


Owl of You

by linkzeldi



Category: Tokyo Ghoul
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-11-09
Updated: 2016-04-25
Packaged: 2018-04-30 19:17:42
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 23,497
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5176643
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/linkzeldi/pseuds/linkzeldi
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A collection of side stories belonging to the alternate continuity route A. Kaneki joins Aogiri with the intention of sabotaging it from the inside and killing the one-eyed king, but he finds in the place he least expected somebody who can understand his pain as a being who belongs in neither the human world or the ghoul one.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chopin's Raindrop Prelude

Red dripping from her neck. Not beautiful at all, not even appetizing, just a disgusting smear. He turned away hoping he could get the disgusting taste out of his mouth if he sneered hard enough.

“D-ad?”

It rings out half-hearted, more like a question. Even so it was a spark and he’s dynamite. The cage of his shoulders raised and rattled, he could already feel the bulges of ukaku forming like pinpricks stabbing the back of his neck without even needing to consciously will it. 

He was going turn and walk away. He was done with his lame half-assed sister anyway. 

“Even in this situation, you call for Pop?” The air smells like blood, he hears fabric tearing again. 

“I don’t wanna be alone, D-ad. Don’t leave me alone.”

“He’s gone now, Touka!” He’s spun around now and a hurricane comes forth from what he held within. Shards of kagune spread across the ground like broken glass stabbing it in multiple points. They carve up the area where his sister had been a second ago. Been, past tense. 

He looks up and a ghost is standing in front of him. White hair. No way. There’s no way someone could change that much in a week. 

“I won’t,” He says with annoying confidence. The half-assed nasally part of his voice is gone, it’s all gravel now. For someone who’d clearly gotten stronger he still looks down with such sad eyes at Touka. Pathetic. 

“Ka-ne-ki?” Touka’s words start feeling whole again, gaining confidence as she sounds out the syllables for a name she thought she might never get to say again. “This is because of me, I’m sorry,” He picked her up and carried her away from the ukaku’s range. Almost impressive if he hadn’t ruined it with that weak line. He still clung tightly onto her, carrying her bridal style as he walked further out of range.

“Why are you such… an idiot?” Touka mutters with the last of her strength, before her head tucks neatly into his chest. 

Like Ayato would just sit there and watch the soap opera unfold before him. His wings whip back and forth firing off rounds, but the best he can manage are pot shots. Kaneki blocks them without even looking, his rinkaku offhandedly slapping them away. Ayato is still confident though, he sits with his hands in his pockets proudly standing up letting his kagune do the work for him. 

This was a weakling after all, as if he would make him lose his cool. He stops paying attention on their conversation to focus his kagune, drawing bloody wings in closer to him, “You look quite different, don’t you, you one eyed bastard? I was sure you were already dead.”

Kaneki charges straight into his cyclone of shards, for a moment Ayato almost smiles at pure enjoyment of the thought of hurting this wimp further, but when Kaneki weaves back and forth between the gaps in his shots the smile quickly twists into another scowl. He sees an image shaking left and right to get closer to him, then nothing. Logic tells him if he’s out of sight there is only one place for the bastard to go. He hears the voice behind him, mute, ice cold, it sounds like death. “You are Touka’s one and only brother. I won’t kill you.”

Ayato knows Kaneki is open, and won’t be thankful at all for that half assed mercy. It was insulting, frankly. Angered further, he takes advantage of the opening throwing his arm back with all his might. “This is why I say all you Anteiku punks are such wusses.”

Kaneki ducks under his elbow, and spins around to match his follow up punch with one of his own. The collision is so hard Ayato feels his knuckles creak. The air registers the shockwave around them. They hit again, and again. He kicks high and Kankei spring heels to dodge him, his shin connecting with the back of Ayato’s leg. They land back to back and each try to elbow the other in the same place. 

“You little,” Ayato growls bestially as he struggles in a contest of strength again Kaneki. Someone he had tossed around like a lost and forgotten child not a week ago. “You see if Ayato was very smart, he would start to notice the similarities between the two of them. It’s why their movements are so synchronized,” From far away narrated a voice that sounded much like a curious child. 

The old man in white next to her barely changed his facial expression. He listened though, nonetheless. She had a habit of mixing important details in with her usual nonsense. It was more of a game that way, he supposed. 

“Kaneki is smart though, I wonder how long it will take him to realize… Or perhaps he already has. Shall I continue?”

Eto, hooded and bandaged looked up to Tatara for input. It was almost cute, how she pretended like his words actually mattered. He said nothing, but Eto kicked her legs that hung in the empty air on the side of the steel beam she sat on happily, regardless. She leaned into it, raising a hand above her head to clear her view, though she could already see with perfect clarity the fight on the rooftop from far away. 

She cupped a hand like a child would, and covered her one eye in a makeshift telescope. Eto activated the Kakugan of that eye, so she could get a better view. Her human eye closed instinctually as she did. 

Kaneki looks at Ayato with the opposite eye, the ghoul one left uncovered by his mask. What an interesting design choice Uta made, choosing to cover up the sign of his humanity. Though lying on the ground, while Ayato loomed overhead was probably not the best time to think of such things. 


	2. Kingslayer

5 days before the Raid

Kaneki had not slept. There was no point really, his waking world was already like a nightmare. All alone on the checkered floor, he felt like Aogiri’s discarded pawn. So lost was he that he did not even hear the door creak until the visitor was right in front of him. He saw flowers, and death, at the same time. The sight made him start and slam his feet against the tiles trying to stand instinctually. 

But it was only Nico. Wearing a flower patterned shirt. With a huge hole in his side. 

“Do you know how many vertebrae Yamori removed with one blow this time?” Nico asked, as if he were making casual conversation. 

Kaneki remained silent. He wasn’t being defiant either, he lacked the resolve. His throat still tired from all of his earlier screaming. It was a limp and passive defiance at best. 

“Oooh, that’s something,” Yamori said as he leaned forward, his flesh starting regenerate at high speeds to fill the hole within him. He tugged at the chest of his cheap button up shirt like he was having palpatations, “Do you understand, Kaneki?” 

“I don’t,” He said in a cracked voice finally. 

He did. To hold himself back from wasting the toy he went through so much trouble to get, Yamori did this instead. 

“Mmh,” he pursed his large lips, “How do I explain it? You know how some people read horror novels, they’re enjoying watching the characters suffer. That really sounds cold hearted when you say it out loud, huh?” 

Kaneki said nothing in response. 

“Well, the world appears to be boring, but you just have to look around to find all kinds of crazy stuff. I’ve always thought this, a world filled with so many wonderful things, once you decide to enjoy it for real you’ll find no better entertainment in the world. I love human virtues, like courage and hope, but I love screams, blood and despair just as much. There’s no way I couldn’t, freshly cut human intestines are just so colorful.” 

When he caught Kaneki’s head starting to slump again as he dozed off, Nico lifted his gaze up by the chin. “Oh, here I’ve gone talking about myself again, just to be fair let me tell you something interesting to you. Yamori’s just like a slasher in one of those horror novels right? But whose really responsible for him, the character, or the author who writes him? If you want to truly escape you’ll probably have to find that person.” 

“Who?” 

Nico leaned down then. Like he was delivering a soft kiss, he whispered into Kaneki’s ear. 

10 Days Before the Raid

She was a ghost in a sheet, and he was a red tongued man in a hulking white coat. An odd pair by any means, but they were amicable enough. 

Eto walked alongside Tatara, nearly skipping as she did. As they walked, Yamori, Nico, and a much shorter figure than the two crossed their path, but both parties continued walking without acknowledging the other. All except for Eto, who followed them with her eyes, and allowed her gaze to linger through the eye holes in her bandages for just a moment. 

Tatara caught her. He did not say anything so Eto spoke first, “Wasn’t the one-eye assigned to Ayato?” 

“What does it matter? He’ll be equally useless no matter where he is,” even with half of his face covered, Eto could till tell he was scowling. 

“If you thought that you should have just killed him,” she said, her voice dropping to a cold tone rather suddenly. 

“Why? Are you saying I should show him mercy?” 

“Nothing of the sort. I’m just saying, he could always grow stronger and become a threat later on.” 

“Doubtful,” Tatara surmised. 

Tatara kept walking, but Eto turned around to see the last silhouette of the one eyed disappear into the depths of the hideout. “The more hurt a one eyed ghoul is, the stronger they become. Perhaps, you’ll be most useful under Yamori’s thumb after all,” Eto said, giggling softly to herself before she turned on heel to follow Tatara again. 

1 Day before the Raid

It wasn’t sympathy, just idle Curiosity that led Eto to peak into the room at the very bottom of Aogiri’s hideout. It was basically a dungeon, with a checkered floor and a high ceiling that was domed and still showed the structural supports like the top of a red cage. From far away she heard it, the sound of someone’s laughter. 

When she followed it with her enhanced ghoul earing though, it only led her to disappointment. The ears of her hood seemed to sink slightly, as she peeked through the door to see the laughter replaced, now by short, weak, sobs. 

The one eyed looked like a ghost of his former self now, hair outgrown and disheveled, body emaciated, even the waiter’s uniform he wore had been torn into shambles with only the dark undershirt and half of the pant legs remaining. She heard the continuous clink of metal as again and again he pulled weakly against his shackles, but all he managed to do was struggle like a slowly dying fish brought onto land. 

Perhaps the rumor she heard about one eyed ghoul’s growing stronger the more they were hurt was a false one after all. Babbling and sobbing in between, he did not seem capable of words at this point, let alone something that could satisfy her curiosity. 

She let started to close the door as silently as she had entered, when a voice floated through it. “Rather than a person who hurts others, become the person getting hurt. Mom, I wonder, if I grew up, into the person you hoped I’d become.” 

“God, that’s boring,” Eto let the door swing shut as she as no longer there, in an instant she had moved in front of Kaneki. 

“Wh…who?” 

She reached out a bandaged finger and tucked it under the cloth over his eyes, pulling it away lightly and letting it flutter to the ground. “You look like shit, huh? Kaneki ken?” 

Eto paused when his eyes suddenly opened wide and filled with recognition, “Ri…ze…san,” He choked out the syllables. 

Was he hallucinating? How mad of him. Then again, they were all a little bit mad here. Eto tilted her head, then tilted Kaneki’s in return with her hand so he could get a clearer look but his expression didn’t change. Well, she was wearing a mask right now, it would make sense for him to just draw over whatever face he wanted to see on top. “Is it, long time no see then? Kaneki Ken?” She smiled a small but sharp way that could still be seen underneath her bandages, whenever she said that name, “Ku..ku” giggles escaping form the same lips. 

Now that she was closer, she could see the difference in his hair. It wasn’t just longer, it had changed color from the black it was when he first entered, “You, your hair’s gone all white.” 

He kept staring at her, mouth agape. She let go of him, and coldly commanded, “Answer.” 

“Rize-san, you were alive?” 

“Rather than a person who hurts others, become the person getting hurt. Do you really live thinking like that?” That’s right, it was just curiosity that kept her here. 

He looked down. “My mother taught me that, so…”

“So? You’re living following those instructions?” She stepped behind him faster than he could see. His shouder felt warm, or maybe she was just cold. 

“Funeral…” He muttered, his eyes slipping again. 

So she called his attention back, “I wonder whose funeral that is?” 

The checkered floor in front of them seemed endless, but there was nothing to see. Still, he squinted his eyes as if he were making out details that weren’t there. Then all at once his eyes widened again and his head reared back. 

“Dad?” 

Eto mimicked him, looking over her shoulder but she still saw nothing. “I see, you lost your father.” 

“Y-yeah. I was four years old so, I barely even remember his face. I remember picking up his cremated bones, at the time I didn’t really know what they were. All I thought was ‘an incredibly scary thing is happening’. I did feel a vague fear.” 

“Tell me the rest,” She urged, gentler this time. 

“I was never really lonely that I didn’t have a father but, I was awfully curious as to what sort of person he was. He was an avid reader, he had tons of books. When I followed the sentences in the books my father had been reading it felt like I was having a conversation with my dead father. It was strangely calming. The smell of old books still calms me down, maybe that’s why I began to like books.” 

Eto took a step backwards again, grabbed her arm and looked to the side. Kaneki seemed to follow her gaze without her saying anything. “Curtains…” He muttered. 

“It seems a play is starting.” 

“Ah.” 

“Oh?” 

“It’s me.” 

“Ufufu, how cute,” Eto looked down at Kaneki, white hair and all he looked main-character ish. “Are you the main character?” 

He looked up at her with bags under his eyes, “I was forced into it,” then gave an exhaustive sigh. 

‘I said I knew the story in this play, and then everyone said do it, ‘Do it!’” 

“You couldn’t refuse?” 

“It was the entire class telling me that, so, I couldn’t really refuse,” His eyes jumped again, “Ah, it’s Hide.” 

“What’s his part?” 

“The witch’s servant.” 

Eto saw nothing still, so she had nothing to comment. 

“I remember it went unexpectedly well…”

“Now, it’s time to hear about your mother, isn’t it?” She cut him off. 

“Yeah… She would write in the pronunciation for each difficult Kanji, and teach me what they meant. My mother was always kind. Though I was an only child in a fatherless family, I think I wasn’t lonely. Thanks to the tons of books mom… and dad left. She was a truly, truly greatly respectable person. She did all her work, and housework without inconveniencing anyone else, or showing a single hint of complaint. My mother who was equally kind to everyone, was my pride and joy. She was good at cooking too, so I looked forward to dinner. I especially liked, the burgers she made. I can’t remember what they taste like any more.” 

Eto said nothing, looking off into the distance again. 

“I bet it’s impossible now-“

“But,” Eto said sharply, “Was your mother really a kind and respectable person?” 

“What do you mean?” Kaneki’s head raised in a start again. 

“Who was she working so hard for?” 

“My mother’s older sister. My aunt. She was tight on money and hounded my mother for cash. Even though we weren’t well off either, still, my mother couldn’t ignore my aunt. When my sister’s husband ran up a debt and lost his job, my mother’s burden increased quickly. She was a part timer during th day and a cleaner at night, and whatever time she had left she spent working at home. I never saw my mother rest, and then…”

“And then?” She led him. 

“And then—She ‘overworked herself’. She wasn’t even sick or anything like that, simply ‘overworked’.” 

“.. I wonder if it was necessary to go that far.” Eto mused aloud. 

“I was ten years old when, I was left all alone,” Kaneki said, his voice cracking again. 

She fell silent again and let him just continue his story. 

“I was adopted by my aunt, she said it was ‘the least they could do to atone for the trouble they had caused, My aunt, the Asaoka family accepted me. At the time I felt hopeless so this made me quite happy. I thought she was a kind person like my mother. And I worked hard to become part of their family.” 

“My aunt’s son, her only child. Yuiichi-kun didn’t do so well at school. Comparing the two of us made her angry, no. My aunt was comparing me with my mother. Her feelings of inferiority regarding my mother were turned on me as spite. Slowly that family became a place in which I found no comfort.” 

“You must have been lonely, Kaneki Ken.” 

“I was.” 

Then Eto finally, after listening to his entire story, snapped and had an ‘aha’ moment occur to her. What she had wandered all the way down to Jason’s grotesque smelling playroom to find, she leaned over him with that same sharp smile to reveal, “But you… might lose those precious friends,” As close as she possibly could, so her face filled everything he could see, she delivered those words like a kiss of death. 

“And it’ll be your fault.” 

They both heard something at the same time, shattering the moment like fragile glass. Their heads turned at the same time, to the great metal door which served as the only exit and entry to this room. “It seems ‘the master has returned’. See you later.” She disappeared as suddenly as she had came, like a ghost leaving the living world. 

“Kaneki Ken,” but her voice still hung in the air after she was gone. With her curiosity satisfied she felt nothing else, not a speck of pity, or even sympathy. 

The Day of the Raid

Eto picked up a metal tray next to Kaneki’s chair, holding it in the air above her head. As she played with it, a syringe fell off and shattered on the ground. 

“Rc inhibitor huh? Is this how he made those crude instruments work on your skin?” She asked the figure hunched over in his chair, sobbing. When he gave no response she clicked her tongue, “Don’t be rude, Kaneki Ken.” 

She wandered around the room in circles, looking for anything else that would catch her eye. She knew now, how the secrets beckoned so sweetly. Only an honest death would cure her now, liberate her from her wild curiosity. 

She didn’t mean her own death of course. 

With nothing else to do, she tucked her legs under her knees and sat politely, waiting for Kaneki to stop sobbing. She tilted her head in a way that made the tufts of her hood perk up when she thought she heard. 

“….Lt.” 

“It’s my fault…My…Why is it always me…Why…Someone save me…Someone…” He futiley continued to pull against the chains on his feet, and weakly stomped on the ground again and again. 

She stood behind him now, and breathed down the curve of his neck. Reaching out to comfort him, yes, even someone like her could understand such a gesture in theory. “Why are you sobbing? Why are you crying? Isn’t this what you chose for yourself? Rather than a person who hurts others, become the person who gets hurt, right?” 

“No…” His back instinctively arched at her touch. How cold. 

“It’s fantastic that you’re so kind, but while it seems like you’re choosing both, you’re really forsaking both,” Her hair draped down long over her eyes as the bandages around her became undone. 

“Shut up,” he choked weakly between sobs. 

She was cradling his head by this point, fingers mixed amidst his white hair. She leaned forward just enough to rest her chin on his shoulder, “Your mother, too. If she’d just ignored her annoying sister’s demands, she wouldn’t have worked herself to death.” 

“Stop it. Leave mom out of this.” 

“What a foolish mother huh? If she loved you, she should have chosen you.” 

“Stop it.” 

“That’s what you wanted her to do, huh?” Eto said casually, digging her elbow into the curve of his back so she could rest her chin on her outstretched hand, and watch the realization spread slow across his face. 

“I… I…I…I..o…mom…Mom, mom, mom, mom, augh…ugh… Why did you leave me all alone?” I’m lonely I don’t want to be alone. Mom. I… I wanted you to choose me. I wanted you to live for me!” 

With crescendo, he regained strength in his voice. Eto taking her weight off of him so he could struggle freely again. “Even if it meant letting your aunt die?” She suggested, as she spun backwards on the balls of her feet. 

“Even if it meant letting her die!” he screamed, the tears on his face being thrown air by the mere force of it as he thrashed now against his chains. With the RC suppressor though it was no good, he was experiencing human weakness yet again. 

Eto stopped her twirl in front of him, and grabbed his cheeks once again. Slowly she lifted his head up, until he was close enough he could feel her exhale. “Good boy, Kaneki Ken. There are times when, you’ll have to protect something even at the cost of something else. Your mother couldn’t do that. That is not ‘kindness.’ She was merely ‘weak.’ She lacked the strength to choose, to turn her back. Can you still remain on the side of getting hurt? Can you forgive people like Yamori?” 

She bit down on her lip hard. A capillary burst, just enough to drip blood from the edge of her lips onto Kaneki’s face. Red blood staining a white lily, she would have described it as. Even if Kaneki was drifting between his hallucination and reality, his instincts were still there as he lapped the blood that had fallen onto his face up like the last drops of water in a canteen after forty days in the desert. 

Gaining strength in his voice, he said “I can’t. I can’t forgive them.” 

“If Aogiri gains more power, the 20th district will eventually be demolished.” 

“I won’t allow that to happen.” 

“Your precious Hide, and your friends at Anteiku, will suffer the same fate.” 

“Anyone who tries to take my place away from me will have no mercy.” 

“Do you have that kind of strength?” 

“Yes.” 

“Are you saying you accept Rize?” She let her shoulders loosen for a second, and plucked her hands off of his face, thinking she had won. 

“No. I’m not saying that.” 

“Huh?” 

“To surpass you, I-I’ll devour you.” 

It happened in an instant, she had gotten just close enough that Kaneki could stand on the edge of his chains and strike out like a taunted snake to dig his fangs into her shoulder. She felt a mix of sensations, as his teeth worked through her skin and his upper body pressed against her. It hurt. She could stop the hurt easily. She could hurt him. Yet, all she did was wrap her arms around the back of his neck. 

“You sure are greedy, taking more after I already offered you some” she said softly, “How ghoul like of you.” 

“I am a ghoul.” 

“That will do, Kaneki Ken. To live, is to consume others. Eat.” 

Before she left, Eto dipped her fingers in her fresh wound before it closed up. She wiped it clean on Kaneki’s hair, just because she wanted to see how the red would stain. 

“Looks like spider lilies have bloomed,” she observed. 

She stood in the doorway to Yamori’s playroom, about to leave as if she had never entered. “If you got crushed by Yamori even with my help that would mean you were weaker than me, huh?” Kaneki couldn’t hear her over the sound of his slow chewing though. With that she was gone. 

The Raid

“Take your positions, where’s Yamori?” Tatara barked. 

Standing between the Bin brothers and Ayato, and standing tall over both Nico put his hands on his hips. “He’s probably still in his playroom again,” he said with pursed lips. 

“Now of all times,” Ayato growled in between his gritted teeth. Which was hard to read any emotion off of, as it was his default way of speaking. 

Eto hid a smirk as she turned her head away. She sat at the edge of the rooftop, kicking her feet as she listened. She only looked back when she heard her name. 

“Eto, we’re going. Noro, you’re in charge here.” She stood up without a word and followed after him. 

The Raid, Nearing it’s Conclusion

Eto held up two fingers over Kaneki’s image, as if she were squishing him from afar. “He’s gotten a lot stronger, don’t you think?” 

“The others aren’t coming are they? I wonder if they’re dead. Hey Tatara, how many do you think we’ve lost today?” 

“I’d say approximately two hundred.” 

“Well for the sake of those two hundred lives lost, we’ll have to do some killing too.” 

“Yeah.” 

Eto stood up and jumped off the bridge they sat on. 

Ayato struggled against Noro’s kagune. “Noro! Let me go!” Kaneki looked at the newcomer with a silent glare. Noro waved back. Then from inside of his robe, pulled a clock. Just as the timer reached Zero, he clicked the top button to turn off the alarm, then extended his kagune to flee with Ayato in tow. 

Just then, Kaneki felt the whole building shake. His eyes widened as he realized the purpose of the timer. He rushed from the ceiling back down the stairs to find where Touka, NIshiki and the others had went off to. 

What he entered was a wide and long room of crumbling concrete. Strewn about the floor were the torn up corpses of both ghouls and investigators. Odd, despite how different they were in life, death made them all indistinguishable. 

Kaneki heard a child’s laughter. He looked up as the cloud of dust began to settle. She was in front of him, then she was behind him. 

A purple ghost, a mummy in rags. He turned his head to follow her with his eyes. She was to his side now. 

The laughter stopped, as sudden as it had started. “You know, Kaneki Ken. It’s because of Aogiri you’ve gotten this strong.” 

“Yeah…”

“With one missing executive, huh, you must owe us a lot then.” 

Five Days Before the Raid

“The author of this scenario,” Nico whispered, “Wouldn’t they be the one eyed king?” 

Now

Kaneki replied back in his unnaturally even voice, “If that’s the case then, I’ll pay it back. Everything you deserve.” 

Kaneki turned his feet, and walked away in a completely different direction than he intended to just a moment ago. 


	3. Subordinate Excuse

**Route V14, Minutes Ago**

He took another step able to feel every single grain of the concrete with his bare feet as he continued further into the tunnel. Yet, this was only the second longest walk he had taken today. 

**11th Ward, Hours Ago**

“I’m not going back to Anteiku.” 

Snow fell from the sky. It was beautiful. But people weren’t like snow. The beauty from Touka’s face drained as her half smile fell. Still she froze in the night air, as if somebody hat hit the pause button on her emotions. 

“Huh? What do you mean?” She asked, even though she already knew. What was coming. 

“I’m..” Without showing his eyes, he said, “I’m going over to Aogiri.” 

Her entire face seemed to swell but especially her eyes. For the first time ever she stared at him with both at the same time. It was too late though, Kaneki had already turned away. 

She summoned energy from nowhere to hurtle her body forward, for a few, stumbling steps. Even long after his image had faded across the opposite side of the bridge, she reached forward towards it. Yet, it seemed the gap between them as they stood on opposite sides of the bridge now spanned the entire distance between two worlds. Her hand fell away, and she to her knees. 

What was she expecting to grasp onto? Eto tilted her head as Kaneki walked past her. She stopped kicking her legs, and jumped down from the railway she sat on to walk by his side. Eto cupped bandaged hands together to catch the few stray snowflakes that fell towards her, but they instantly broke once they touched her fingertips. 

Kaneki’s eyes looked backwards to observe the behavior, the first time he had looked back throughout their entire walk. When she caught him though, he looked forward again without much fuss. 

“It’s snowing,” She said. 

Kaneki said nothing. 

Eto snapped her arms behind her back and turned to face him, stopping them both in their tracks. “I can’t wait.” 

He walked past her without asking her for clarification. 

“Saying goodbye to a colleague? An ally? A friend? A lover?” She suggested in a much quieter voice from far behind him. 

Kaneki remained silent. He was so much more talkative before when he was crying out in pain. His heel dragged for a moment though, and then stopped. “No, just bidding farewell to the loathsome past.” 

“How poetic,” She said, at his side again, suddenly. “I’d prefer something from Hakushu Kitara, though.” 

Kaneki’s eyes opened a little wider, but he still said nothing. She didn’t giggle as Kaneki had expected her to. She was oddly silent after that. He thought it was better that way. They continued the rest of their walk in silence. 

**Route V14, minutes ago**

She stopped. Kaneki only knew because the light tapping of footsteps on water behind him, like the sound of rain in this dark tunnel, became quiet. 

He turned around against his better judgement, to see a bandaged face hovering just below his. He could see no eyes in that expression though, odd, how she was so close yet she seemed so infinitely far away from him. 

“You should put your mask on,” Eto said. 

“Why?” Kaneki replied drily. 

“You must be thinking, I’m only going to be around other ghouls, what’s the point?” Eto said, getting a little bit closer. 

He stared at her silently, a reply that neither confirmed nor denied her. 

Without invitation, Eto took his hand that held the mask and guided it with an unseemly gentleness until he could feel the leather pressing up against his face. “Maybe it’s just that ghouls can only be their true selves with their masks on.” 

Kaneki harshly turned away, leaving her hand batted back, empty in the air. With his back turned to her, he pulled his mask back on. He continued walking forward, ignoring her giggle of approval as she trailed behind him. 

**Route V14, Now**

“Yamori, report.” 

The only person who stepped forward was a white haired boy in ragged clothes. 

Tatara, clearly unamused enunciated a second time, “Ya-mo-ri.” 

“He’s dead,” Kaneki said as he looked up, revealing his mask. An eyepatch to cover his human eye so his kakugan could shine a brighter red, even in the dark of the tunnel. 

Tatara looked past eyepatch, for anybody else to offer him an explanation. He tried to ignore him like a single dead fly in the corner of his windshield. When he realized he could not, his eyes narrowed. “He was with you the last time I saw him, you’re either really brave or a real idiot announcing his death in front of me like that,” Tatara let an icy breath escape from under his red tongued mask. 

For some reason, Kaneki foolishly thought Eto might intervene and speak up at an odd time just as she seemed to do twice before. But as always in the presence of Tatara she was silent. Kaneki would fight alone again, no matter, he braced himself as he pressed a thumb against the knuckle of his index finger. 

“Sorry, I wouldn’t know what you’re talking about,” he said as the leather of his mask contorted into a smile. 

“Don’t bother, Tatara. A weakling like him couldn’t take down Yamori by himself,” A voice arose from the crowd of cloaked ghouls as it parted like the red sea and Ayato, followed by Noro walked through. 

“Suspicious,” Tatara growled. 

“Do you even distrust the words of your own subordinates?” Kaneki asked, a piercing hollowness to his tone. 

Ayato pushed past Kaneki before Tatara could physically snap in half. “Besides, I saw some little shit investigator dragging him from the base while I was with Noro.” 

Tatara’s gaze narrowed as he looked down at Ayato for a moment, then he nodded. “Bin?” 

Silence again. 

Both Ayato and Kaneki shrugged. 

A cloaked ghoul stumbled forward. Smaller than the two of them, but unlike the other members of Aogiri her mask was unique. A three pointe star that looked like a knight’s helm, with a plumed feather on top. When she removed the mask though, the feather was actually just a hair antennae of hers that stayed up in defiance of gravity. 

“Those idiots, they weren’t supposed to die like that,” she stomped her foot, revealing wrapping around her legs that almost looked like grieves. As she moved forward, the shawl hanging from her shoulders swayed with her. 

“What do you mean?” Said Tatara, straight to the point. 

“Cuz I was supposed to be the one to kill ‘em, not some investigator who caught them gettin’ cocky.” “Bin? Who was it?” Ayato said, ignoring the first part to Kaneki’s surprise. 

“Dunno, some kind of eyebrows investigator- bastard I’ll- Oh well I guess the eleventh ward is mine now,” She said dusting off her cape, having gone through the full range of emotions. 

“We’ll need a replacement,” said Tatara primarily to himself as he ignored the chatter, “Three blades.” The ghoul immediately snapped to his attention, “If you want Bin’s leftover turf so bad, you can take over their management position too.” 

Stunned, the ghoul’s eyebrows knotted and a bead of sweat fell down her face as she stared frozen for a moment. 

“R-right now?” She managed to stutter out. “Because you said so?” 

“Of course, Tatara speaks for the king in all manners,” now of all times Eto decide to speak, turning her head back from whatever had distracted her before. It was a little bit eerie, how far her neck could stretch. Like the possessed girl in the excorcist. 

“O-oh, if the king says so then, I’d be honored too.” 

Unconsciously, Kaneki finished cracking his first knuckle at mention of the king. Nobody noticed, except for three blades whose face flashed for a moment the look of recalling some unpleasant memory, before it disappeared again. 

“Then Yamori’s replacement-“

A slim young man, with light colored hair in a chin length bob that covered his left eye looked with his uncovered eye at his partner, a much bulkier looking man with his hair slicked back as he stomped on the ground. 

“Huh, what is it?” The Zebra striped ghoul said sleepily. 

“Big brudda can do it!” The larger ghoul in the white suit said, his hands at his chest like an excited schoolgirl. 

“No didn’t you hear them, big bro is dead. Listen up will you Shousei?” he tilted his head up at an odd angle as he spoke. 

“That’s not fair Hoguro, I understood perfectly what they’s was sayin,” Shousei said, genuinely hurt. “I meant brudda Naki.” 

“Naki was Yamori’s direct subordinate,” said Tatara, who was somehow able to tune out everything except for what he needed. 

“That won’t do you any good, that idiot Naki went off and got himself captured weeks ago,” Miza spoke up, the same look of annoyance flashing on her face again. 

“I didn’t know you were bothering to keep track of him,” Tatara commented. 

“Shut up, I was just-“ Miza realized who she had ordered to shut up and cracked another awkward smile, “I mean continue talking, sir.” 

“It’ll have to be one of you two then,” as Tatara said this, both of the white suit ghouls exchanged nervous glances. 

Kaneki suddenly felt soft bumping into him from behind. He looked to see a ghost image that his eyes could not quite make out. When he recentered his vision, he realized he stumbled straight in between the Shousei and Hogoru and stood directly in front of Tatara once more. He looked back one more time, the ghost image now was waving at him. 

Eto. 

Only ever intervening entirely on her whim. Kaneki closed his eyes, then opened them once more to face Tatara. “I was also one of Yamori’s subordinates,” he stated plainly. 

“Out of the way, his toys don’t count for shit-“

“It made me stronger.” 

“Why should I-

“Yamori did whatever he pleased and because of that he died without any benefit to the aogiri tree. Still, in the time I’e spent here, I got strong. I endeavor with all my power to repay you as best as I can for it. Like your dog, if you tell me to heel, I will heel. And if you tell me to bark, I will bark.” 

Cold. Efficient. Hesitating for nothing. The Kaneki Ken that Tatara had dismissed weeks ago seemed like nothing more than a ghost now. How fitting the pure white hair of the boy who stood in front of him. Individuals should not continue on living after they were dead. Tatara thought in that moment even though he was not the least bit superstitious. 

“Fine then, don’t disappoint me,” Tatara finally relinquished. Then, “Scatter,” He barked at all the ghouls still hanging around. 

Kaneki turned to Ayato when he felt the room clear up. Ayato’s shoulders tensed, and he immediately shot him a look that could kill. “Huh? So what is it?” 

“I-“ Whatever Kaneki wanted to say got lost, “Did you see anybody else escaping the hideout besides the ghouls here?” 

“Oh, are you talking about Banjou? That bastard’s not here, is he?” 

“He’s your own subordinate.” 

“If he was too weak to make it out alive, how is that my problem?” 

“I’ll show you-“ Kaneki began talking in a smooth voice, unlike Ayato he completely hid his aggression still. The fight between them unfinished, he cloaked his movements to stop the ghoul from perceiving he was about to lunge forward, when he was caught in the middle of his sentence by a small hand yanking the back of his collar. 

“Eto?” Ayato said in shock. 

He had forgotten she was there. 

“Come now, let’s all get along for the sake of Aogiri’s mission,” She said in a sing song voice. 

“Besides Kaneki, I think you’ll find avenging banjou to be rather unnecessary,” A voice announced from the back row. 

“Sorpresa, your faithful friend Tsukiyama.” 

“Huh,” Kaneki said flatly. Then after giving the purple haired ghoul wearing aogiri robes over a fine suit a lookover, “You’re not dead?” 

Tsukiyama put on a smile that twitched, “Oui, Kaneki.” 

“There’s just too much left for me to die just yet,” Tsukiyama brought his forehead down slightly so there were shadows cast over his eyes. Kaneki did not notice. He was looking at the robed figures following behind him. 

“Banjou?” Kaneki said, the smallest of creeks creeping into his flat voice. 

“Kaneki,” Banjou said, his eyes were swollen and red but he was smiling finally, “So you were safe.” 

Kaneki leaned forward to see Banjou’s familiar gang behind him. He gave a pensive expression that looked like he really wanted to smile, but didn’t in the end. 

“Your appearance, your hair,” Banjou said as he stepped closer. 

Kaneki took a step backwards, putting a hand at the side of his head. “It’s strange isn’t it? A few things happened.” 

“What happened to Yamori? In the end, the guy tossed us all in here. Then he bailed us out.” 

“You can thank me later!” Tsukiyama shouted from behind. 

“Where is he now?” Banjou continued without pause. 

“Ah, I defeated him,” Kaneki said his eyes seemingly frozen in place, “I wasn’t the one to kill him though, I heard it was a CCG investigator,” life and death was now held in the most analytical of tones for him. “It works out either way though, because now I’m going to join Aogiri in his place.” 

“Defeated him?” Banjou spat out in shock, “You did all by yourself? You’re joining what?” 

“Yes,” Kaneki answered, flat and succinctly. 

One of the gas mask brothers who had been nervously fidgeting until now looked up, “Uhm...” When Kaneki met his gaze he spoke up, “Where are Kei and Kouto?” 

“I wasn’t able to save those two due to a lack of ability,” Kaneki said without hesitating. 

Banjou’s eyes swelled again, and glistened as fresh tears began to roll down his face. “So, as expected I can’t ever do anything!” 

“…”

“I’m-I’m just a powerless bastard!” 

“…”

“I’m sorry Kei,” his head rocked back and forth with sobs, as if Banjou had completely forgotten there were still others around him “I’m sorry Kouto.” 

“That’s enough Banjou,” he called suddenly and Banjou froze. “There’s no need for you to feel any more responsibility than this as a leader. It’s pointless suffering over a mission that couldn’t be accomplished with your own power. I will take over from now on as leader, so leave everything you’re feeling to me.” 

Banjou watched in stunned silence, or perhaps it was awe. Even Tsukiyama could not help but lean forward a little, and perhaps he suppressed an urge to lick his lips on the delicious scene unfolding before him. “If Yamori captured you that made you his subordinate, but since I’ve taken over his position you’re my subordinate now. Don’t worry, because I’m going to protect everyone under my thumb.” 

How strong, but how sorrowful. 

“If Banjou goes, we go too!” The masked brothers announced. “Though I’m afraid we won’t be much help to Kaneki.” 

“What a wonderful plan,” Tsukiyama finally pushed his way in between them, he grabbed Banjou’s cloak by the back of the neck and yanked him backwards as he performed a bow in the same motion. It was graceful, really. “If monsieur Banjoi is the shield then-“

“It’s Banjou, but-“

“I’m the sword,” He did not even seem to mind it as the knee of his striped suit dug into the dirtied sewer concrete, so absorbed in the moment was he. “I will become the knight, that cuts through your road of thorns.” 

Kaneki said nothing. 

“Can I be of use, Mr. Kaneki?” 

“I don’t care what title you attach to my name, really,” Kaneki was looking downwards, he started to lean, “Aogiri requires strong ghouls, I’m sure a Tsukiyama would be a valuable ally so please lend me your strength. How-ever,” He drew out the last part the same with his breath so he could breathe coldly down Tsukiyama’s ear, “If you are unnecessary I’ll kill you.” 

Step. 

Shiver. 

Step. 

Kaneki walked past Banjou now to find Ayato who still lingered, fuming slightly. “Yeah, what is it?” Ayato shouted again, before Kaneki even had the chance to say anything. 

“Is it okay with you, if I take Banjou as my subordinate, Ayato?” Kaneki asked. The politeness he would have had even two weeks ago was gone completely as he stood looking his much younger, now colleague in the eye. A man whose blood was still fresh on his hands. 

“What the hell are you doing?” Ayato growled. 

“Asking you a question,” Kaneki said. 

Ayato gritted his teeth, his canines making an awful noise as they gnashed. He saw though, the phantom purple behind Kaneki still who had been watching this whole scene, and merely spoke through his teeth. “If you want to pack your ranks full of weaklings and weirdoes, be my guest.” 

“I had two more questions,” he stated plainly. 

Ayato turned and started walking ahead, but at last minute he spoke without looking back, ”Fine, just get it over with quickly and don’t fall behind.” 

“How is this operation organized-more specifically is Tatara at the top?” Kaneki looked at Ayato with the same wide eyed expression he had been wearing the entire walk, like he wasn’t looking at him directly but instead about a thousand miles in front of him. 

“No, the one eyed king is at the top. Oh, but just because you both have one eyes don’t go thinking you’re anywhere near his league he’s nothing like you. Then directly under him are Tatara and Noro. Then underneath the king’s direct subordinates are executives like you and I, we manage the ground forces that operate in cells. Orders will come down the chain and we’ll respond to them and coordinate, we’re also responsible for making sure the grunts below us follow those orders too.” Ayato leaned into Kaneki with interest for the first time. 

“Have you ever heard of the CCG’s ghoul ranking system?” He asked. 

“No,” Kaneki said with disinterest. 

But Ayato kept talking over him anyway, “Most of the Executives are what they would consider S-rated ghouls. A and B ranks are standout soldiers like tweedle dee and tweedle dumb out there,” Hoguro and Shousei far ahead, “You can usually recruit them to Aogiri no problem because they want to get ahead. Some of them are stragglers too, stray dogs you can find just about anywhere.” 

“Are you talking about yourself?” Kaneki asked. 

Ayato inhaled sharply, but when he noticed a purple ear twitching on Eto’s cloak he blew steam instead. “The rest C’s, they’re mostly ghouls that get absorbed into the ranks to use as maintenance or spies. They don’t really have any better options.” 

“What if a ghoul refuses to join?” Kaneki asked. 

“Like I said, they don’t really have any better options,” Ayato kicked the ground in front of him and then turned around to face Kaneki, hands in his pocket, his jacket still jagged from the fight. It was a not too impressive attempt to posture. 

“I see,” is all Kaneki said in response. 

“Tch,” Ayato must have thought for a moment he was speaking to the old Kaneki, who would cry out in empathy for the ghouls absorbed into Agoiri’s ranks. 

“My last question then, the one in bandages always hanging around Noro and Tatara. What’s her position?” 

“You mean Eto, right?” Ayato lowered his voice, “She’s an executive like you and me, except she’s directly under Tatara. Sometimes she wanders away and asks other people questions, but she’s mostly always at his beck and call. Must have been some kid he rescued.” 

“Ah..” 

“Tatara’s been known to do that. He was the one who found me-apparently it’s a bad habit he got from his old group picking up strays- hey, are you even listening?” Ayato ran backwards to catch up with Kaneki who had stopped walking to think, and bashed his head into the side of his face. 

Kaneki did not even move, just spoke with a bulge in his cheek, “No, I stopped listening because I don’t care about your or Tatara’s life story.” 

“Eto,” Tatara’s voice called out before any further fight could start between them. “We’re going, don’t lag behind.” 

Eto seemed to dance past them as her small bandaged feet tapped lightly on the water. Kaneki trailed her with his eyes, ignoring Ayato who was still fuming in his face. He stood there completely still for a moment staring at his empty hand. 

That’s right he would pluck. 

Tatara was the closest to the king. Sticking by him would put him on an escalator to finding the king. Even if Tatara asked him to do unsavory things, Kaneki felt he could manage as long as he kept his goal in sight. He raised two fingers at the walking pair, the hulking white that was Tatara and the small cat eared purple behind them and crushed the two in between his thumb and index finger. Pluck out the bad sprouts. 

As he did so, Eto turned around to wave at him in a friendly manner. Gesturing in some overdone sign language for both him and Ayato to catch up. Kaneki let his hand fall flat. 

“I’m on my own,” he muttered, shattering the illusion that he might be able to make new allies amongst Aogiri. 

Eto just found him a curiosity, that was all. Her curiousity would be satiated and then she would return to Tatara’s side. There was no need to put any weight into the chain of interactions that led them to this point. 

“You know Tatara, I think Ayato and Kaneki were talking about me behind me back,” Eto said, mock grasping her cheeks. 

“Is that so?” Tatara entertained her, but only barely. 


	4. Emperor's New Clothes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tsukiyama and Kaneki decide to settle an argument.

**Abandoned Train Station at the Edge of the Fourteenth ward, morning**

“This seems unnecessary,” Kaneki said as he raised his arm, only to have it yanked back down by the measuring tape Tsukiyama had looped around it. 

“Of course do you expect to fight in rags?” 

His old self might shuffle awkwardly under such scrutiny, but he bore it with a flat line expression on his mouth. Eyes dull, he blinked and rolled them to the side of his sockets without moving for fear of another yank so he could make eye contact with Tsukiyama. 

“I don’t see how it makes a difference,” He said drily. 

“Clothes make the man, Kaneki,” He said with another squeeze around the spiral of measuring tape wrapped around Kaneki’s waist. Kaneki might have gagged if he didn’t have such a tight control of himself. 

Kaneki lifted up his black soled shoes, turning his foot to inspect them. “Well, it’s practical to have shoes again,” it was almost a complement towards Tsukiyama, he let his ankle hang limp so he could observe where the edges of his shoe came together into pointed toes, “Though I don’t understand why they need to be so…pointy.” 

Tsukiyama who had already been on his knees to take measurements of Kaneki’s legs, grabbed his foot then with a gentle touch around the contours like he was in the final scene of Cinderella, and spoke. “It fits you Kaneki, you’re like a petite elf prince.” 

With that Kaneki kicked Tsukiyama hard enough to free himself from his measuring tape prison. Kaneki stretched, his new battlesuit hugging the shapes of his body tightly as he did so. Tsukiyama who had skidded across the floor came to a stop, brushing back his hair that had been startled slightly from his part, a satisfied look on his face. 

No, the opposite of satisfied. Satisfied implied a fulfillment, a fullness, Tsukiyama looked absolutely hungry. 

“Enough of that,” Kaneki said in a tired voice, “I asked you up here to spar anyway. We shouldn’t be wasting time, or rather, I don’t have time to waste anymore.” 

“Is time spent between friends really ever wasted?” 

“We’re not-“ Kaneki sighed, but the harshness in his voice drained the moment he heard the door open behind him and his thought was left unfinished. 

A ghoul a bulky as Tsukiyama, but with a friendly smile and a spiral on his chin that completely underwrote any intimidation in his appearance emerged from the doorframe. 

“Banjou,” Kaneki intoned in a softer voice. 

“Hey Kaneki, or should I call you boss now?” Banjou said, with a joke salute. 

“Kaneki is fine.” 

“Anyway, boss Kaneki-“

“Banjou.” 

“What is it boss Kaneki?” 

“Nevermind.” 

“Anyway, as I was saying, I think we should leave this room.” 

“Why?” Kaneki asked, matter of fact. 

“Well for one, I never got free reign of Aogiri when I was under Ayato, and now that I can I think we should scope this out, and try to meet as many people as possible.” 

Kaneki looked with downcast eyes, “New people like Shu and Haru?” When he looked up, he saw the visual wince on Banjou’s face, and spoke again much quieter, “We don’t need to meet any new people. Not in this place, anyway.” 

“Besides, Kaneki already has enough friends with the two of us, Guitarro,” Tsukiyama said. 

“Banjou,” Banjou muttered. 

Kaneki ignored them both. 

Banjou grasped at empty air as he raised his hand at his chest, “Still we should get out of this room, it’s a little bit depressing.” 

The room which Aogiri had given Kaneki was empty with a stone floor and wall paper scratched off the walls. Kaneki had pulled in a single chair, and a pile of clothes Tsukiyama had dragged in with him were scattered about, but it barely looked livable. 

“Merci beaucoup, my friend Banjou, my point exactly,” Tsukiyama seemed to glide across the floor, and in a moment he was next to Banjou leaning against him which was easy with their similar heights, “This room, what a stale aroma it has. It lacks a certain style no?” 

“Oh now it’s Banjou,” Banjou said. 

“What am I supposed to do, fen shwe the chair?” Kaneki asked drily. 

“Just let me buy you a better one, I can write a check and-“ Tsukiyama began. 

“No thanks. The battle suit was enough, Tsukiyama.” Kaneki looked down at the parts where his flesh was exposed due to the suit’s cutouts. “In fact, it might be a little bit too much.” He kicked over the pile of clothes, and began searching through it for something. Eventually, he found a black sweatshirt he pulled over himself. 

“This is better.” 

“Kaneki! How could that possibly be better? You look like messueur Trumpet, here.” 

“That’s not even a string instrument.” 

“I wouldn’t mind looking like Banjou.” 

“But you’re missing the entire point of my design,” Tsukiyama protested. 

“Besides, Banjou was right. We need to leave this room. The cold and bitter tasting air is suffocating.” 

With that, Kaneki was out the door way. Banjou pulled up his sweatshirt to posture at Tsukiyama and followed right after. Dying words still tried to escape from Tsukiyama’s mouth. He took a deep breath, touching his chest as he did. 

“Be cool my self,” he said, “Kaneki will see reason after all.” 

With that he followed third in line, hardly a position for an elite like himself but it was all he had to work with. 

**That same station, several minutes later**

“Maybe we should ask for a third opinion,” Tsukiyama said, increasing his pace to keep up. 

“You’re still-“ Kaneki began, but dismissed it, “Banjou what do you think?” 

“About the sweatshirt? I think it makes you look like a total bro! Bro!” Banjou said occupying the space on Kaneki’s other side. The three of them taking up the whole hall together. 

“There’s your third opinion, Tsukiyama.” 

“That should not count. Banjou is your right hand man, it’s his obligatin, nay his duty to support your decisions.” 

“Aren’t you also my right hand man then, by that logic?” 

“No, as your left hand man I am supposed to play the role of the deceitful defender, and think and act in ways you normally would not- Hey, are you listening?” It took Tsukiyama bumping into Kaneki’s shoulder to realize why they had stopped. 

Two female figures stood in the common room area about to square off, each dressed in aogiri robes sparing the masks. One was pink, and one blue. From the hair antennae Kaneki recognized Miza from earlier, but the pony tail was new. 

Pony tail threw her cloak aside to reveal a bubbling object in her hand. With a click as she swept it, the object solidified into a katana. A quinque. Kaneki’s eyes widened as they filled with images flashing by. He saw multiple blades reaching out for Ryouko. A line drawn across her neck as the two parts came undone. All he could do was cover her eyes and make her not see, but he couldn’t look away. 

“Hey Petit, aren’t you going a little bit far?” Hooguro grabbed her by the hand holding the Quinque, and immediately was on the receiving end of her elbow. 

“Don’t call me Petit,” She said as she wrestled with him, “And I’m not going to let her live when she let Bin die.” 

“Fer the last time!” Miza spat angrily, her hair bobbing as she did, “I didn’t abandon my post to spite Bin, I had to go help Gagi and Guge.” 

“I’m sure it had nothing to do with getting their territory and their executive rank after they died,” She said, stopping her struggle against Hooguro for a moment to stare Miza down, “Parasites like you who can’t achieve on their own strength are pathetic.” 

“She sounds familiar,” Kaneki whispered to Banjou. 

“That Hakatori. She’s one of Tatara’s direct subordinates,” Banjou whispered back. 

“Oh,” Kaneki said exhaling softly. “We should move before we get involved.” 

“Hey new boss what are we gonna do about this?” Shousei said, leaning in to join their whispering. 

“Gajuuu, gag,” A large bald man wearing a white round mask added in, joining their whispering circle as well. 

“Yeah new boss, it’s hard to calm Miza down when Naki’s not around,” Shousei translated. 

“Kaji guge,” Another identical looking bald man wearing a similar looking mask tried to squeeze in. 

“She did us a favor,” Shousei translated, again. 

“What.” Kaneki said flatly about his sudden lack of personal space. 

“Those are the white suits-Kaneki-Bro? Where are you?” Banjou started to shout as he got lost in the crowd that was beginning to form around the fight. The same crowd that like a great beast chewed Kaneki up and spit him out on the open floor where the fight was about to take place. 

He saw just then Hooguro’s struggle against Hakatori failed, and she lunged forward with her Quinque. Kaneki leaned back hard to avoid it, holding himself up with his knees. He side stepped smooth to watch the quinque sail past him almost in slow motion, then commanded in a cold voice, “Tsukiyama, Banjou!” 

Tsukiyama was first from the crowd, springing from it like Ballet. When his feet hit the ground he twirled to match the same pose Hakatori held with her quinque out, then suddenly changed tunes and jammed his elbow down hard on her outstretched arm. Before she could retaliate, he pulled her up closer to him and held a finger in front of his lip, “Calmato, there are more important matters at hand my friend.” 

Banjou responded just as fast, diving out in front of the crowd in front of Kaneki ready to be his shield. He rose from the floor a second later unharmed, as Miza had only drawn her kagune in a defensive stance, and they unfurled from around her a moment later three tails spiraling and revealing an impatient looking face as she saw Banjou on the floor in front of her. 

“Banjou, are ya fuckin serious?” She said. 

“Hey, it was worth a shot,” He said, rising to his feet and stretching, not a single bit dejected. 

Hakatori struggled against Tsukiyama for a moment, watching as he pulled along with her like another violent dance between them and realized he would not be brushed off as easily as Hooguro. She let go of her Quinque then, and watched it skip across the floor with narrowed eyes. Tsukiyama raised arms into the air and backed off slowly, taking a slight bow as he did. 

She turned her back away and looked over her shoulder, not wanting to let the others see her sulk. “What’s so important you have to get in my way?” She said looking back over her shoulder. 

“Yes,” Tsukiyama said clapping his hands together, “Kaneki would like to know if he looks better with, or without the sweater?” 

“Get back to work,” Hakatori hissed on reflex. 

“No,” Kaneki cut him off, grabbing him by the face and pushing Tsukiyama to the side. “I wanted to report to Tatara that I was settled.” 

Hakatori watched him with those same narrowed eyes for a quiet moment of decision, then turned her head forward again, “Fine then, follow me.” 

With her gone, the tension dissolved from the room immediately, and the white suits flooded Kaneki. “Good job, Boss!” 

“Can I call you new bro now?” Hooguro said. 

“No,” Kaneki responded flatly. 

“Kaneki, bro! Did I do a good job?” Banjou asked scratching the back of his own head modestly. “Yes, Banjou.” 

“Hey, how come he gets to call you Bro?” Shousei complained. 

His face refused to show any reaction to what was happening in front of him. He just quietly tried to correct them, “I’m not your-“

Hooguro moved himself through them, skittering like a lizard until he found Miza’s pink hair antennae. When Miza grumbled with annoyance, it was enough to make the white suits scatter and line up. “See, I told you he’d clear it up he’s stronger than even Big Bro Yamori was.” 

“I can see that,” She said, elbowing Hooguro away from her face, “Yo eyepatch!” She called after Kaneki, “Thanks!” 

“I was forced into it,” Kaneki said. 

“I see that,” She said with a laugh Kaneki didn’t really appreciate as she scratched the bridge of her nose. “Look these idiots don’t listen to anybody but Yamori or Naki so you’re gonna haf’ta learn to just go with the flow.” 

“Is that so,” Kaneki said, he said while turning to leave. 

“About the sweater thing- you might want to ditch the whole outfit. Looks like something Ayato would wear,” Miza shouted after him. 

Kaneki made his first facial expression all day as his brow creased at that remark. 

“I don’t think her vote should count,” Tsukiyama said to him in close confidence. 

“Agreed. What does she know?” Kaneki whispered back. 

**Upper floors, an hour later**

“Did you know this was a planned train station addition before Aogiri converted it? They use a lot of abandoned construction projects, because a lot of developers skip town the moment they think ghouls are heading in,” Banjou said as they waited outside the door. 

“Ahh, so interesting Banjou. Could I have a moment of Silence from your chatter to meditate on that?” Tsukiyama said from Kaneki’s other side. 

“Thanks, I think,” Banjou said, he started to bashfully scratch his beard, “Y’know gathering information is pretty easy around here, because when you’re weak most people ignore your existence.” 

“You don’t say,” Tsukiyama said, conversationally. Or at least that’s what Banjou thought it to be. 

Kaneki stepped out, and both brightened immediately, but for different reasons. “So I was right, the siege at the Aogiri base was just a distraction for something greater,” His feet felt unsteady for a moment as he stepped forward and remembered the corpses he had seen scattered about in a ruined hallway similar to the one he stood in. 

Red. The veins beneath his eyeballs pulsed. Red eyes. Tatara stared him down. 

“Are you going to waste time standing in the door forever?” Tatara asked. 

“No,” Kaneki responded, even though he sensed the question was rhetorical. He stepped aside and this time didn’t object at all when Tsukiyama put a hand on his shoulder. 

Tatara stepped out into the hallway with a girl following behind him not even reaching his shoulder height-wise. Tatara’s white cape to Hakatori’s black one, they contrasted, and the two both stopped when they heard a noise from down beyond the hall. 

A boy with a tangled nest of blue curls of hair just shorter than Kaneki emerged, and was soon standing right next to him. 

“Ayato,” Tatara surmised. 

Ayato nodded. 

It seemed like this was Tatara’s preferred form of conversation as he spoke a lot calmer than usual his next few lines, “You’re going with eyepatch to intercept a CCG transport as soon as we gain a foothold in the 13th ward.” 

“How come he didn’t have to meet with you in private?” Kaneki asked under his breath. 

“Because he doesn’t ask questions,” Tatara said, dismissing him. 

“Got it boss,” Hands in his pockets, Ayato smiled a razor toothed smile at that. His smile froze for a second though as he leaned across and tugged at a tear in Hakatori’s arm. “Hey, were you in a fight or something?” 

Then Tatara narrowed his eyes at Hakatori. Kaneki saw something he had no expected from her stone face. It cracked. He had not realized until now, how young Hakatori looked beyond those eyes of hers. 

“We were just sparring, it’s nothing worst wasting time chatting about,” Kaneki said, lightly touching his chin and nodding as he did so. “I do have a question worth your time though,” He said lifting his head to meet Tatara’s red gaze. 

“Out with it, then,” Tatara said. Kaneki wondered if the red tongued mask Tatara always wore was for gas, because he seemed to constantly breathe out poison. 

“Do you think Kaneki would look better with or without the sweater? Tsukiyama sprung up to ask. 

“Go back to work,” Tatara hissed. 

“That’s not my question,” Kaneki said quickly, “That little boy that’s always following you around, Eto. If he’s not with you here, then where is he now?” 

“How should I know? I’m not their keeper,” Tatara said, and with a sweep of his cloak he was gone. 

Hakatori shot Kaneki some kind of look he did not even want to begin trying to comprehend and then she was gone too. Kaneki looked at the pieces of broken glass that littered the hallway, and stared out one of the many broken windows that lined the walls of this building. He let out a deep breath and turned to the rest of the group, Ayato’s desperately attempting to be menacing face standing center among them. 

“Are you the reason that everybody is calling me eyepatch now?” Kaneki asked, idly. 

“Dunno, I just heard the big lug investigator call you that as you were running out of the hideout with us, then I started saying it. Rumors and stuff like that travels really fast around the world of ghouls,” In quiet moments like these outside of fights Ayato could be much more observant than first impressions left to desire. 

Kaneki looked to the side, and Ayato noticed. 

“Don’t be so down about it, a name’s important. They call Hakatori over there graverobber, and I’m-“

“The loud mouthed kid?” 

“Haha-ha, So funny-eyepatch,” Ayato’s eye twitched, and he grinded the sharp points of his teeth. Kaneki wondered if he realized how poor he was at hiding his anger. When he tried to crack a smile, Kaneki could hear muscles in Ayato’s face straining from long periods of disuse as some kind of horrible expression bubbled up on his face. 

To interrupt the invevitable, Kaneki curtly said, “What about you Ayato? Do you have an answer to my question.” 

Ayato stopped suddenly and seriously thought it over, looking with his shrewd blue eyes. “I think your outfit without the sweater would look much more-“

“Hmm?” Tsukiyama piped up. 

“Cool,” Ayato said quite seriously. 

“Dolce! That’s one vote for me,” Tsukiyama said, posing for victory. 

“He’s thirteen-“ Kaneki began, before he realized he was getting sucked into it, “No I meant, does Tatara always make a habit of picking up strays?” 

Ayato suddenly got a lot quieter. “I don’t know. Hakatori used to work under Bin, she just got reassigned after Bin died. I think he’s just so tall and sturdy looking people end up following whether he wants them to or not.” 

Kaneki heard birds fly off in the distance, like the last time he had talked to Ayato like this. “I see,” Was all he said, voice as neutral as ever. When the three of them were a good distance away, he turned to Tsukiyama, “And technically we’re tied now at one vote each.” 

“We’ll need a tiebreaker,” Tsukiyama announced with all seriousnesss, “Let’s go find this young, Eto.” **In one of the many deep corridors, several minutes later**

Tsukiyama’s nose crinkled, small and elegant thing that it was Kaneki could notice his obvious sniffing right away. 

“Hmm, that roast really. I would have recommended a Columbian blend, oh uh?” He stopped murmuring to himself when he noticed Kaneki and Tsukiyama were both staring him. “Oh, you did not notice. Perhaps it’s because the two of you lack such a refined sense of smell as I do-“

“Tsukiyama,” Kaneki said drily. 

“I can smell a coffee roast, and it’s odd because normally this place smells like the trash that gutter trash throws out,” Tsukiyama said much more quickly than normal. “If I could have somebody show me the layout of this place, I could point out the source to you,” He offered. 

Banjou grabbed his bicep and thrust it into the air at the opportunity, “Looks like it’s finally wallflower Banjou’s time to shine,” He said as he moved ahead to lead the group. 

“Don’t be so modest Banjou, if you were a flower I’m sure I could cut and make a lovely bocquet of you.” 

“Are you trying to be sweet or sarcastic, I can’t tell any more honest,” Banjou said, that last word pervading him so much that even Tsukiyama broke his composure for a moment to laugh his deep voiced laugh. 

Glass crinkled in the hallway announcing their steps. Not that it mattered anyway, this was one long drywall bare corridor stretching out into the darkness completely abandoned, same as all the others. The look in his eyes grew even duller. He only bothered to look up when for the first time in several doorways, he found a door still intact on its hinges. 

“The smell of coffee is coming from in there,” Tsukiyama confirmed. “Who in Aogiri is high ranking enough to make a paradisio out of this dump, I wonder.” 

Kaneki heard something as he put a hand on the door. “Water,” he murmured. Then without answering the curious looks of either of his companions he turned to walk away. “Let’s go back, this is pointless.” 

That is until his ear’s twitched at the sound of the door opening. He turned around, almost cracking his neck like a horror of the exorcist, “Why did you open the door?” 

“Banjou told me too,” Tsukiyama said with his hands up, immediate surrender. 

“No I didn’t. I said ‘Don’t open the door, Tsukiyama’, and you said ‘Don’t tell me what do, Banjou’ and then you opened the door.” 

“That’s all in the past now, why are you even bothering to bring it up? Kaneki, look at this,” Tsukiyama was already halfway into the doorway, so Kaneki figured whatever damage was already done. He took a step in, and it was like walking into an entirely different world. 

There he stood in a well furnished apartment, shoes pressing against two layers of rug and carpet. He looked at the wallpaper on the walls, and traced his eyes across the candle lighting and mirrors until he saw several bookshelves occupying space for the rest of the room. 

Far beyond the sight of the several velvet plush furnishings that littered the room, the bookshelf looked comforting to him as he had to leave behind all the books behind at his old apartment, and the impressive collection Anteiku had as well. He gently, like he was caressing the back of a lover, ran his finger down a spine which read ‘Kitahara Hakushuu’ and after enticing himself so, removed the book. 

Blue dragonfly, with emerald eye

Silver and green; 

Blue dragonfly, the delicate wing

Glinting on a reed in flower. 

He read a passage out of a random page. His eyes closed and he felt something wash over him. Water? When he tried to open his eyes again the were heavier this time, like the fight one had to make when awakening from a dream. 

“Is anybody there?” A voice came fluttering through the crack. The crack of a second door opening, and not the one they came through. As a mist poured out, Kaneki realized where the water came from. He caught sight of, like a wave hitting him suddenly, seafoam green that spilled out of a towel. 

Kaneki made his second facial expression that day. One of wide eyed shock. 

Blue dragonfly aloft, 

Perhaps by sleight of hand; 

Blue dragonfly caught, 

Crinkled skin of a diva. 

More like, welcome to my parlor said the spider to the fly. Kaneki thought, as he yanked Tsukiyama by the back of his collar and pulled the two of them out, only catching his breath when he was sure they were on the other side of the door again without being seen. 

“I saw Eto’s cloak on the ground, the one with the cat ears. He just threw it about, he must have no sense for neatness at all,” Tsukiyama commented, still removed from the situation as always. 

Kaneki said nothing. 

“Well we should have stayed, Eto would be the deciding vote, and I think he qualifies for the same young gentleman category that Banjou and Ayato currently occupy.” 

“Hey, at least I know not to snoop where I’m not told,” Banjou shot back. 

Kaneki, who had been quietly processing inside of himself away from the noise now turned to them with the slow anticipation one would only find in a horror movie. “Eto is not a kid-” He started, remembering the curvy flesh he had saw while Tsukiyama looked elsewhere scrutinizing the tidiness of the place. “Nevermind.” 

He did not say another word the rest of the trip back. 

**Kaneki’s assigned living quarters, later**

“I was thinking about the battle outfit, Tsukiyama.” 

“Yes?” 

“I’m going to wear shorts over it now, too.” 

“Why this?” 

“Reasons,” said right before Tsukiyama stopped him with an outstretched. 

“Kaneki, the door’s ajar!” Tsukiyama said, taking immediate defensive action as if somebody would actually bother to booby trap their rooms while they were gone. 

“They better not have messed with my chair,” Kaneki said seriously. 

He walked straight past Tsukiyama’s defensive pose and opened the door. The room was completely empty, as they’d left it. Except for a chair and a table. No. Somebody snuck into their room and added furniture. How dare they. 

He saw Tsukiyama’s nose crinkle once again and realized what for. On the table next to the chair sat a coffee maker, with one cup already brewed and waiting. Kaneki saw a single white note that might have identified who left the gift, but he crumpled it between his fingers before anybody could read it. 

He really didn’t need to know. 

Things weren’t like what they were before. He wouldn’t be so naïve as to believe he could make friends wherever he went, if he was just kind or patient enough. He didn’t need any more friends to begin with. 

All that mattered was protecting the ones he had. And for that reason, he must pluck. 

When Kaneki motioned to crack his knuckle, he dropped the book he had been carrying in his opposite hand by accident. It was a stolen book now. He picked it up, and massaged the spine to put it back in place but he had already lost the page the rest of the poem was on. It would have to go unfinished. He sat there quietly, until one of the two dared to interrupt him. 

“The coffee’s going to get cold,” Of course it was Tsukiyama. 

“Tsukiyama, did you buy that machine?” 

“Non, Kaneki,” He said with a dramatic shake of his head. 

“It’s bad to waste good coffee,” he put the book down softly on the table and picked up the dish and saucer for a drink. 

It was warm. 

**The 13th Ward, That Night**

It was cold. 

Kaneki saw bodies crushed by the concrete ruins once more. This time he didn’t bother to avoid them, stepping straight over them. He heard both dead bones and glass shatter even further beneath his feet as he walked across the threshold. 

Kaneki looked up slowly. 

In the distance he saw a light as he began to catch up with the other executives. On one side there was Noro, and Ayato. Ayato spat, and looked away at his arrival. 

Eto waved to him the whole time as he walked to catch up. She only stopped when Tatara turned away,. She looked at his great back for a second, slow, and then back to Kaneki. Then she left to follow him. As it always was. Kaneki wasn’t disappointed this time as he had no expectation. 

Bowing ghouls draped in red on his either side. Kaneki walked forward towards the rest of the executives. Their foothold in the 13th Ward now firmly re-established. As he walked though, he made sure to keep quite a distance between him and them. 

“I’m on my own,” He reminded himself for maybe the hundredth time. 


	5. Hangman

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Naki arrives

Aogiri’s 13th Ward Holdout

Aromatic. 

Kaneki tasted that air in silent nostalgia, as he waited alone for the first time in days for his coffee to boil. 

Alone, that was right. That was the path he had chosen when he walked away from Touka that day. On that bridge. Broken apart. Burned. He heard her fall to her knees with the brunch of snow, and the fast breaths she made as she suppressed tears. He heard it all but didn’t turn around. He forced himself to go forward. 

So without Banjou or Tsukiyama around, this current loneliness was what he had chosen for himself. He was at peace with it. He could appreciate the atmosphere around him, all except for one detail. 

A fly in his soup. Or coffee, so to speak. 

In a broken windowsill across from the wall he leaned against,a little girl kicked her feet. It was obvious she was watching him. It was even more obvious she wanted him to notice her watching him, from the occasional giggles that floated out in clusters from behind her bandages. 

“There are a few options with preceding events, A: we could say nothing significant to each other and there would be no problems. B: I could come out of this conversation feeling worse. C:If I don’t engage you at all, you may become uncooperative. C is the most annoying,” Kaneki tipped a coffee cup in her direction, “Would you like some coffee, Eto?”

“Is this how you greet everybody? How strange,” Eto leaned forward out of her hood so Kaneki could see her lips move under the shadows of her bandages as she said, “Kaneki Ken.”

“You’re the strange one,” Kaneki lowered the volume of his voice almost to pout. “Why do you insist on always pronouncing it fully like that?”

“I like the sound of it, Kanegi was the town where Osamu Dazai grew up right?” Eto replied cheerfully, suddenly being too forthcoming. 

A simple “Hmm.” was all she received in response. 

Kaneki realized he was staring at her much too intently, and forced himself to relax and withdraw the coffee cup he had offered a second ago. He picked the finished coffee, and poured it into cup with learned precision. 

He walked away from her and sat in his familiar broken chair, setting the saucer down and bringing cup to his lips to savor one sip. 

“Ah,” He let his eyes relax for just a second, then he heard footsteps from behind and his attention immediately snapped at the ready. 

“Let’s go eyepatch,” Ayato said walking past him already in his full mission gear, a cape with a fur collar, and a mask which looked to be the black version of Tatara’s red tongue. 

“Mmm-hmm,” was all he received in response. Kaneki traded his coffee for his eyepatch mask, and began walking to catch up with Ayato. Before he fully left though, he hesitated and looked back. 

“You can have it,” he said to her.

“How kind of you,” She rested her chin in between V-shaped hands in preened. 

Kaneki said nothing. He briskly turned his head back. Faster, to catch up to Ayato. His footsteps echoed throughout the train station. 

Eto lifted her head and turned it, watching him go. This time she simply said, “Mmm?” In his wake. 

Kaneki lifted up the caution tape over Ayato’s head, because he knew if it were left to Ayato he would stubbornly walk right through it. 

“Tch.” Ayato walked ahead.

Kaneki behind. Soon they were followed by two cloaked men. Then four. The underlings folded into line behind them as they continued down. Ayato jumped into the subway tunnel from the platform, and broke into a full run. Kaneki followed behind him. He heard the swooping of aogiri cloaks as they descended like a pack of birds, further into the darkness outstretched before them. 

Eto kicked her legs again, twice more, even though there was no one else in the room besides her now. Then on the third kick she dismounted, like a child trying to show off on a swing set. She took delicate steps to the table where Kaneki had left his coffee, and leaned over it. She coudl see her own reflection, that disappeared as the whole cup began to shake. Eto smiled once again, wide enough to wrinkle the bandages she wore, and giggled even though nobody was there to hear.

13th Ward Highway, Night Time

Sirens. Three, no four police cars escorting with the prison truck in the middle. They rode on an elevated highway. Kaneki observed this from where he and Ayato were perched atop a tall building. 

“This will be easier if we don’t talk to one another,” Ayato finally said. As this was their first mission assigned solo together, as in the past Yamori and Ayato had been the ones to work together most often as the Bin brothers stuck to themselves, and Noro almost exclusively traveled with Eto and Tatara. And also, in the past he and Kaneki had done nothing but fight up until this moment. 

“You’re the one who started talking,” Kaneki said, and crouched down to get a closer look from afar. 

“Heh,” Ayato pointed forward. The ghoul’s behind them rushed forward, and jumped down en masse, their cloaks whipping wildly as they descended. 

From far away two individuals were watching. One black, and one white.

From farther away still, someone was laughing. Eto turned her head to make sure she was not followed, and then continued down through the bare stone hallway. 

She finally slowed in front of a nondescript door. She opened it and, like crossing into another world entirely she entered a well furnished and plush room with flowers printed on the wallpaper. She stopped to look at the bookshelf briefly. Then leaned in closer, did she fill this row up all the way except for one book? No, it was missing. 

The thought though, made her laugh off the suspicion. She crossed one more doorway into the bathroom, and set the cup and saucer she had carried all the way here down by the sink. The purple cloak she wore fell to her feet in an instant. The bandages came slower, as she had to unwind them from around her. Until at last her arm and face were free. She took up the cup once more, and pressed it to her lips even though the coffee had long gone cold.

When she finished, she smiled, “Kaneki-ken, huh?”

A few minutes later

The rattling of chains, and, the sound of tears. Sniffling, hiccuping, snorting, he cried out in every way possible.

“Boss, boss.”

Sirens. Naki rattled his chains again, even though hanging on the wall in chains like this, his fate was currently in suspension like the hanged man.

“I want to see you...Boss…” He cried out with tears dripping off his nose.

Ayato and Kaneki were the last ones on the rooftop. Just as planned, the police cars began crossing underneath the overpass. 

“Let’s go,” Ayato said.

“Mmmhmm,” Kaneki nodded simply in response. 

He jumped and felt the air rush underneath him. Even though he had never jumped from this great a height before, when told about the mission from Tatara, in preparation he read several books about skydiving. He straightened his arms and legs, so he would move through the air with little resistance. Then his single ghoul eye blackened, as he called out that power from within him.

Kagune. Four snakelike tendrils shot out, and in an instant he pushed them farther than he had ever asked before, slamming them into the walls of the overpass causing the wreckage to fall onto the highway below. 

Ayato spread his wings then, launching several shards into the car at the start of the convoy. The car bled smoke and orange fire, and turned on it’s side slamming into a wall.

Kaneki landed in time with Ayato on the railway, walking along it for a few paces before jumping down again, landing on his knees and reshaping his kagune to whip low on the ground. The force of it caused cars to tip over on their heads and spill out onto the freeway. Eliminating the last remaining members of the escort. Now alone, the prisoner transport bus crashed into the wreckages in front of it, and swerved onto it’s side. Sparks flying as metal scratched across tar.

Two cars behind them stopped. Kaneki suddenly found himself staring down several barrels. “It can’t be helped,” he muttered to himself. Before a single shot could even be fired, the other aogiri ghouls hiding in wait beneath the highway emerged and descended upon the officers. Kaneki turned away before the screams began.

He and Ayato landed right next to each other. For a moment, his Kagune still out he was considering simply slicing the transport open. Before he could fully contemplate he logistics of that action, a noise disturbed the silence that had fallen on the highway with the success of their attacks.

Landing on metal from afar, just as Kaneki and Ayato had done. But they had eliminated all predicted enemies. Kaneki and Ayato turned around at the same time, apparently thinking the same thing. 

On a lamp-post overlooking the highway. Two masked ghouls, one standing and one kneeling. One dressed in black, one in white. Though their masks were both black and white striped, one was horizontal and the other vertical. One had a hole in the left eye, and one in the right. 

“Who are they?” Ayato seemed to notice first, perhaps because he was used to it, the momentary convulsion a body gave before a Kagune emerged. 

Each of them drew out four tendril like Kagune. Rinkaku, just like him. No, Kaneki realized as he made his first facial expression for that day with a slight widening of his eyes in shock. Rize’s kagune, just like him. 

They lunged forward at him, one slashed up and the other down, Kaneki taken offguard could not do anything but block. Crossing his arms in front of his face, as his four kagune wrapped around his front and hardened. He swung wildly to the side with his kagune, activating his kakugan once again with the stress of the motion, but both ghouls nimbly jumped out of the way, landing on the highway railing next to one another.

“What do you know?” The white haired one began.

“Just like papa said, he was strong.” the black haired one finished her thought for her. 

They both removed their masks at the same time, and Kaneki saw, a single Kakugan in both of them in opposite eyes. 

Kaneki became lost at what to do at this moment. Like he was standing on a crossroads. Fortunately or unfortunately, his next actions were decided for him when the convoy truck caught fire. 

Kaneki’s attention was drawn by the explosion. Ayato furiously waved his hands back at the wrecked convoy, “Damn! Hurry up and grab him! Move it!”

Kaneki looked back for the two ghouls that had interrupted their attack. He was staring at empty air, except for the few cinders that were blown away from the wreckage. “They’re one-eyed,” he said, trapped ten seconds behind the actual action. 

Ayato looked back at at Kaneki standing there stunned and muttered, “Useless,” underneath his breath as ghoul underlings surrounded him. 

“I’m burning…”

Ayato stopped his furious ordering to listen. 

“I’m burning...I’m burning,” the voice came from the convoy, it sounded like a screaming child.

“Boss!Boss!Boss!Boss!”

Then the truck fell silent for a moment. Ayato thought, he had failed, and those were the trapped ghoul’s last words. His shoulder’s relaxed. Then the truck’s wall burst open, and Naki exploded forward.

“I’m burning!” Naki, the ghoul they had been sent here to retrieve shouted as he lunged forward to attack Ayato. Ayato could see the chains Naki had broke free from falling apart in the air behind him. “Boss! Boss! Boss Yamori!” Naki shouted as he launched a consecutive chain of kicks, that Ayato nimbly dodged by tilting his body left and right. Not even moving from his spot. 

“Hey you! We’re!” Ayato lost the patience to even finish the sentence, and kicked Naki square in his core sending him backwards to collide with the highway rail guard. 

Naki bucked, and lowered his head starting to cry again. “Boss!” He fell foward onto his knees, looking up at both of them, tears streaming down his face. “My feelings!” Naki’s body shook with his head, as tears dramatically sprayed back and forth in the air. He pounded the ground with both hands. “My feelings for boss are so hot, the car flipped over. It’s no use.” His head was down facing the ground one moment, and then Naki spastically flipped on his back the next, turning back and forth as he hit the ground with both hands. 

“What’s his story?” Ayato closed his eyes and shook his head, “Of all the people to come out of here, he’s nothing more than an idiot.”

Naki immediately stopped his tantrum and sat up, glaring down Ayato. “Did you call me an idiot? The only one who gets to call me an idiot,” He pointed at his chest, “Is boss Yamori!” 

“But you guys!” Naki stuck out his index and pinky finger as he cracked his middle knuckle with his thumb, “I’ll pound you into a bloody pulp!” His ukkaku kagune emerged, looking like an insect’s limb that stretched to cover his shoulder. 

He sliced the air above Ayato’s head. Ayato looked shocked for a moment that this idiot was so all over the place he didn’t need to dodge seriously. Ayato backed up, and continued dodging Naki’s wild strikes. Not even bothering to draw out his Kagune. He could have, but every time he thought of it he could imagine Tatara’s impatient face all those other times he had roughed up Aogiri’s targets when he was younger, and it made him confused on what to do besdies keep dodging. 

“Hey, eyepatch! Stop standing there caught dumb and help!” Ayato said, as he was being chased around Kaneki. 

Kaneki dropped the guard stance he had been frozen in, and let his kagune fade into a blood mist. “Hmm,” he said, giving a bare minimum acknowledgement of Ayato’s current predicament. 

“What’s with you lately, you used to never shut up!” Ayato shouted back as he was being throttled, Naki grabbing him by his fur collar and flailing him around. 

“You don’t have the privilege to talk. You don’t have the freedom to move as you like. If someone gives you an order, shut up and do it,” Kaneki repeated back to Ayato drily.

“Well then shut up, and start talking!” Ayato shouted back at him. Ayato shouted, over Naki’s cries of “Boss! Boss! Boss! Boss!” 

Kaneki sighed, and called out to Naki just as he had caught up to Ayato and was throttling him by his collar. “Naki, it was Yamori who sent us. If you cause any more trouble he’ll be disappointed in you.”

Naki immediately stopped his attack and fell on his knees in front of Ayato. “I’m sorry, Boss.” He lowered his head and apologized over and over again. 

Aogiri’s 13th District Hideout

“Higher ups are given their choice of any room and this idiot picks a toy store?” Ayato asked. Kaneki guessed Ayato was asking him, because he was the only one standing next to him, but Kaneki said nothing in response. 

“Still, I wonder when he’s going to figure it out-” Ayato continued his one sided conversation. 

Just then a volleyball bounced across the ground in front of them. Then a toy robot smashed against the ground and fell into pieces of springs and gears. A wooden toy horse spit in half. Naki emerged from the hole he had carved in the metal shop cover, holding his head and swaying back and forth. “There’s no way!” Gagi and Guge were both right behind him, they both held their hands out trying to reach him and muttered something intelligible. 

“Boss! Boss Yamori! You can’t be dead, boss!” He fell bakwards and began to pound his arms and legs in a tantrum once more. Gagi and Guge both went to his side to try to lift him back up to his feet, but he continued to struggle against them. “Damn you CCG, I’m going to beat you to a bloody pulp.”

Ayato clicked his tongue. “What a racket,” and walked away. Kaneki watched him go, wishing he could be Ayato. 

“Boss! Boss...boss...boss...boss,” Naki cried out, tears and snot dribbled down his face en masse, and finally he settled down laying and looking upward at the blank ceiling above them with one final whisper, “My divine boss.”

Kaneki watched on silently. 

Naki flipped over again, and reached out with a shaking hand towards a pile of crayons he had thrown earlier while going through his toy pile. He grabbed the red one, as blood was Yamori’s favorite character. “I wanna see you...I wanna see you, boss.” His eyes were red from crying, no, they were naturally that color, as he on his knees started to draw on the floor in crayon. 

“Yamori...Yamori...Boss Yamori.”

He started drawing sloppy characters on the concrete. Kaneki glanced over Naki’s shoulder, and read the character ‘Yawo’. 

“Huh? Is this right?” He asked one of the twins. Gagi and Gugi both tilted their heads at the same time. “Say is this right?” He asked the other. 

When he got no confirmation he started to whine again, “Boss.”

Kaneki knelt in front of him, and picked up a black crayon. Wordlessly, he wrote the kanji for Yamori’s name in front of Naki. 

“This is Yamori?”

“Yeah.”

Tears fell onto Yamori’s name etched onto the ground. “Boss! Boss Yamori!” 

Kaneki stood back up again, and started to walk away. 

“Eyepatch!” He called out after Kaneki. “You’re a good guy! Thanks man!”

Kaneki looked to the side. Then down. He paused for a moment as if he was about to say something, but then he decided against it and tried to turn away. 

“Hey!” Naki called after him. Kaneki thought for a moment, Naki was more observant than he had thought, and had caught onto him. “How did Big Bro send you to get me if he was dead?”

“I was his subordinate while you were gone so he uh, left me a letter as his last order,” Kaneki said, caught off guard. 

“Oh, that sounds right,” Naki said his thoughts aloud, then he looked up at Kaneki like one of those children who asked “Why” over and over again to every question you answer them, “How could he write you a letter if you were dead, though?”

“He wrote me the letter from heaven, I guess,” Kaneki said.

Naki jumped up from his knees and immediately was at Kaneki’s side. Fast enough that Kaneki was startled, and took a step backwards. Naki looked at him with starry eyes, or perhaps that was an aftereffect of all the tears, “That’s right, there’s no way my divine bro wouldn’t be able to go to heaven and pull a trick like that. Hey, hey, hey.” He grabbed Kaneki’s shoulder and started shaking him.

“What? What? What?” Kaneki said flatly with each turn of his head, back and forth. 

“Hey! Good guy Kaneki! Can you help me write a letter back to my big bro in heaven? I gotta let him know I got out okay!”

“Okay,” Kaneki said quietly in response. Anything to stop the shaking. “We’ll need paper first, though.” 

They walked down the hall, arm and arm. Not because of any newfound friendship though, but because Naki had no sense of personal space. Or perhaps he could sense Kaneki would try to sneak away if he let go. Naki still wore his bue prison uniform, and his broken handcuffs, so to the other ghouls they passed in the hallway, it looked like Kaneki was befriending a shady person. 

Kaneki opened the door to his own private room, which wasn’t difficult because it was already hanging on the hinges. He entered his stone room with broken windows, bare except for one chair, one table, and now two large gentleman huddled up together in the corner. 

Banjou, asleep and drooling on Tsukiyama’s shoulder and Tsukiyama’s eyes half lidded stared at the door. It took a moment for him to recognize movement, and then he shot upwards letting Banjou’s head hit the floor, shocking him awake too. 

“Were you two waiting for me this whole time?”

“For you, of course, Kaneki,” Tsukiyama said with a slight bow of his head.

“You should probably find better things to do,” Kaneki said, meaning no real harm but it made Tsukiyama’s face contort in shock. 

“Kaneki-aniki?” Naki said rushing into the room just then.

“Kaneki kaneki?” Banjou said, repeatig the first thing he heard after regaining consciousness.

“No, we say Bonjour, Banjou. This obviously must be Monsieur Naki, no?” Tsukiyama said recovering as he slid to position himself between Naki and Kaneki. 

Naki immediately jumped backwards, detecting something foul even if he might not have been smart enough to articulate it. “What’s with all the weird words your saying, huh? You american!”

“American?” Shu said, for a second time his face contorting in shock.

“Naki he was speaking in French right now,” Kaneki corrected gently. “His name is Tsukiyama.”

“Don’t get in our way Americana, we’re going to write a letter to big bro in heaven. I’m sure if I address it to heaven it’ll make it there for him!” Naki said, not listening and practically hissing behind Shuu’s shoulders. 

Banjou looked down at Kaneki, “Kaneki that’s-”

“I know-” Kaneki said, with the same desolate look, “He was unexpectedly pure.”

Tsukiyama took a deep breath, which was obviously forced on his part. “No need for the hostility, are we not forging an alliance?”

“Four gem lions?” Naki said tilting his head, and tiling Kaneki too because he was practically wrapped around him by this point. 

“He wants to help us, Naki,” Kaneki said, just hoping Naki would calm down and let go. 

“Oh right! Then it won’t be as hard!” Naki said letting go and bustling with excitement as he stomped his feet up and down, “Alright, let’s do the lions!” He said when he finally settled.

“Do you have any stationery around here?” Kaneki clarified.

Both shrugged. Tsukiyama might have gone on another diatribe on how Kaneki should rely on him more and take better advantage of his resources, but Kaneki cut him off with a glance. 

“I”m sorry Naki, we-”

“Will just have to go look somewhere else!” Naki anounced before Kaneki could finish, grabbing him once again by the neck and dragging him along like a fish caught on the hook. He looked to Banjou and Tsukiyama with desperate pleading eyes.

They both awkwardly made busy with their eyes as if they were preoccupied. “Sorry, Kaneki. I have to take Banjou out to get some real food, Aogiri has been starving him for months. Maybe then he’ll develop into something useful!” Tuskiyama said waving to Kaneki as he left the doorway.

“Just don’t take me any place weird,” Banjou said, side eyeing Tsukiyama.

I really am all on my own, Kaneki thought for the third time in as many weeks.

The Back Alleys of Aogiri’s HIdeout, Several Minutes Later

“Naki, there’s nobody else who wants to take charge of the rest of Yamori’s subordinates besides you,” Kaneki said finally after they hand wandered from room to empty room. 

“Ehhh? Weren’t you in the gang though?” Naki said, cleaning out his ear. In a way that made Kaneki flinch as the action alone reminded him of something unpleasant. Laughter from far away. The taste of fish just on the point of rotting.

“I was, but only for a short time, no more than a month,” Was it already January? Hakushuu Kitahara’s birthday would be soon. He should read more of his poetry. 

“You must have been lucky then,” Naki said.

“What?” Kaneki asked.

“It means you must remember getting tortured by boss real good. Sucks that ghouls don’t scar, though,” Naki pushed his hair back and revealed a missing section of his ear that looked like it had been bit clean off, something he ws obviously proud of, “At least I got this right!”

Kaneki mirrored back, “Right,” without wanting to put much thought into it. That would keep the echoing sounds of laughter and scratching deep inside his ears at bay. He realized though, this is the second time he told a lie to Naki, only to be caught and then saved by Naki’s unexpectedly genuine character. 

“This is the staircase where the boss broke my nose, oh and down there he beat me until I punctured a lung!” Naki continued recounting, as Kaneki zoned back in.

“Why are you telling me this?” Kaneki asked.

“Because they’re my fresh horse memories, obviously!”

“Precious?” Kaneki said, and then shuddered at the idea. He decided to lag a few feet behind Naki without questioning him any further. 

Suddenly though, Naki sniffled. His face became niagra falls in a matter of moments. Before Kaneki could ask why he was crying, Naki turned around and lunged towards him flailing his upper body, “I”m not crying dumbass!” He shouted.

“I find that hard to believe considering everything I’ve seen to day,” Kaneki said, unusually talkative as he smoothly dodged Naki’s blows. 

“Well I-I-” Naki had to pause to swallow all the mucus down his throat, and snort it back into his nose. Kaneki distracted, got pushed over by Naki with both hands, the way I child would. “I gotta admit something! The last time I saw boss before they took me to the cochlea, I got in a huge fight with him. I was just mad at Nico for stealing the boss’s underwear and then the boss stepped up to defend him-I-” Naki fell to his knees in front of Kaneki now. 

Kaneki stood silent for a moment. The same way he had when watching Naki desperately try to write on the floor. “I don’t know what to say, but, uselessly flailing about and sobbing like this in front of me, it’s better than crying alone, right?” Kaneki said, reaching out a single finger to touch his shoulder.

Before Kaneki could let the moment rdrop though, Naki lunged forward one last time and wrapped Kaneki in an unwilling hug. Rubbing off the last of his snot into his new leather shoulder. Kaneki stood there with his arms hovering in the air behind Naki, unaware of what to do, but thinking this was definitely more annoying than when Naki tried to beat him up a moment ago. 

“Naki, I heard you got back and I wanted to say that I-” Miza said, coming down the hallway breathing harsh like she had run here the insant he heard that he returned. She stopped dead in her tracks, her ponytail whipping around as she did. “On second thought you look busy, I’ll just come back later, yeah?” She said excusing herself as Kaneki was trying to pry himself out of Naki’s arms. 

“Don’t leave me here!” Kaneki called after her. 

“You smell like Big Bro,” Naki said softly into his now mucus covered shoulder. 

Several minutes of searching later, in front of that door

Kaneki silently signalled with two fingers. Naki tried returning the signal with several complicated hand gestures that Kaneki assumed he was making up on the spot from the oposite side of the doorway, and Kaneki just nodded back pretending he understood. 

The two of them silently breached the door to get into the room with the flower wallpaper. Kaneki made his way to the desk and swiped a piece of stationary. Then he quickly darted out, Naki diving after him when he was done keeping watch. Even though the diving was completely unnecessary. 

‘How did you know that place it was like a pair of dice!” Naki asked, when they were a safe distance away. 

“Paradise,” Kaneki corrected and then recounted to Naki, how he and Tsukiyama and Banjou had discovered the room on accident. “It must belong to Tatara, but Eto wrote me a letter from within it, so that’s why I knew she had stationary.’

WIthout any warning, Naki took another swing at Kaneki causing him to duck low. “That’s right you should get on your knees!”

“For what?” Kaneki wondered if knowing the reasons behind Naki’s temper tantrums was even a necessity at that point.

“Your girl wrote you a letter and you didn’t write her back? Boss would hate that kind of rudeness!” Kaneki realized that in his confusion Naki had somehow managed to grab him by his raised collar.

“We’re not-” Kaneki began, but by that point Naki had already let go and was on a different topic.

“Sorry, but I just realized Kaneki-aniki,” He took another deep sniff of the air, “Since you’re the one who smells like Yamori you must be his heir. I’ll serve under you, and I’ll revive the white suits in your name.”

Kaneki narrowed his eyes, unsure how to respond to such a genuine pledge of loyalty in front of him. He looked up again, “Won’t you need to change out of those prison clothes and into a white suit then? You don’t want to disappoint your boss in heaven by being poorly dressed.”

“No way!” Naki grabbed his prison collar and started trying to physically rip it off, “Forgive me bro! I’ll fix it right away don’t be mad!” He said, taking off down the hallway, taking the stolen stationary and pens with him. 

Kaneki heard Miza in the hallway far down say, “Naki hey I just wanted to say-” and then “Fuckin idiot don’t strip naked in the middle of the hallway.”

He sighed and walked back into his now empty room. On the table, he saw a book he had left alone. Kaneki felt his neck where Naki had throttled him a second ago.

Moments later, at the flower covered room where Eto resided, she heard a knock on the door.


	6. 10 Commandments

Tsukiyama pulled Banjou towards him by the shoulders. He saw the uncomfortable shift in Banjou’s eyes with the approach of his hands, but ignored it as he grabbed the loose bowtie around his neck at both ends and began to tie it. Banjou’s eyes moved from uncomfortable, to uneasy, to somewhat comfortable in stages, until Tsukiyama pulled it a notch too tight and he had to cough.

Tsukiyama took a smooth step back and he wheezed, expertly wiping the phlem off his face with a kerchief he kept in his pocket. Banjou wiped his own face with his sleeve. 

“Do we really have to go through all this just to eat?” 

“What a ridiculous question dear Banjou,” Tsukiyama affixed his crescent shape mask, before stepping out on the balcony. 

What he did not do was answer Banjou’s question, which Banjou noticed with grunt, before pulling his own half mask on and following Tsukiyama. Tsukiyama shooed away the women who usually accompanied him to his balcony seat with a dismissive wave of his hand, to disappointing cries of “Mr. MM”. Banjou watched Tsukiyama take a sip of bloodwine and swirl the glass then smoothly navigate to the balcony railing and lean over it with utter bewilderment as to how this could be the same man he had known for the past week. 

Banjou approached much less gracefully and looked down to the little girl that was being brought out to fight, “That poor thing,” he muttered empathically, but knew he was too weak to try anything. Yet, here he was jumping over the railing anyway. 

“Merde! Shit! Banjou!” Tsukiyama called after him. 

It was too late though, Banjou already had the other scrapper, an eerily tall and thin thing, in a hold as he shouted out to the little girl. She had block long hair with a bow in the middle, from this close she looked like a porcelain doll, her pale skin glowing under the showlights the ghouls had set up. 

“Run! Make a break for it! Why are you standing there?” Banjou shouted in his struggle. 

The girl broke out into a fit of laughter, buckling over, causing a wig to fall off her head and reveal much shorter, wilder white hair underneath. Suuzou Juzuya found a good natured ghoul coming to save him, and only getting caught in a trap for his efforts to be the most hilarious thing. Banjou found two knives in the chest of the scrapper he was wrestling, and quickly threw them down. 

He did not notice the fact that the minute he threw the scrapper down the wounds tried to heal themselves, but only ended up eating themselves in the moment. Suzuya did notice, but he did not care. 

“CCG! CCG RAID!” THe ghouls in the upper balconies screamed as they began to make their way to the exits. Only to find the cleaning staff had blocked them, and realized with horror as the cleaning staff pulled suitcases from their garbage bins that the cage was being shut on them. 

Juuzou caught a case which had been slid across the room to him with his foot, kicking it up into the air and catching the handle and undoing it with the same smooth motion. A quincke handle sprouted in his hands, and grew until it became a scythe. 

Banjou tried to scramble away, but was knocked on his ass by another ghoul running to escape and had to watch Juuzou’s slow deliberate approach as he dragged the sharp end of the scythe on the concrete fighting pit floor. 

Before Banjou could be reaped though, another ghoul jumped in between them his suit tails trailing behind him as he arced majestically through the air. “Sorpresa!” His Kagune spiraled around his right arm, just as he went to strike at Juuzou. Juuzou spun the scythe in his hands to catch and deflect the blow but could not do much else effectively. 

“It’s not a surprise attack if you shout it out loud beforehand,” Banjou said, because it was all he could think of in the moment. 

Tsukiyama undisturbed, flicked a finger up and with it the part in his hair, “Banjou may be an idiot, but if you died Kaneki would be upset, therefore I will protect you.” 

“Hmm?” Juuzou said confused as he readied his scythe for a second round of blows, “Ghouls protecting each other, trying to protect scrappers? I don’t get it really, but hey you,” He pointed at Tsukiyama but of course did not know his name, “Poop kagune. You would make a really good quinque, why don’t you give it to me.” 

“Poop kagune!” All of the grace and composure that showed in Tsukiyama’s face drained in a second, as he hit a childish pique, “I’ll show you a poop kagune.” 

In another world Juuzou said to himself, “Hmmm, this is a good quinque but how do I get Yamori’s kagune to work again?” 

“Pay attention to me!” Tsukiyama snapped, and once again Banjou had to wrestle a man roughly his size. This time though, it was to repay the favor Tsukiyama had done him by saving his life now, and convincing him to disengage from the dove. The two of them together, cut through the crowd looking for an exit. 

There was a sewer they could use to escape, that they dropped the bodies into when they were finished and drained out into an abandoned section of the wards. Just when they thought they were clear though, a spine quinque tore through the area in front of them. 

Tsukiyama looked back, “Can you stand on your own?” he asked, as he had been carrying Banjou’s weight on his shoulder as his injuries from Juuzou healed. Banjou nodded. 

The spine user was a woman in a tight skirt, whose hair was either braided or kept out of her face with a part. It made it so Tsukiyama could see every part of the way she glared at him. “What lovely eyes you have madame,” He said conversationally as he snapped his fingers. Akira Mado did not return to him the sentiment. His kagune dragged across the spine, splintering but not breaking as he ran forward. Just as he had read with his eyes, after the spine straightened out, it left an opening. He struck forward at Akira intending to finish her with one blow, only to be caught halfway through as she stabbed through him with the opposite end of the spine. 

“C-est,” Tsukiyama coughed out as he stumbled forward. Akira made to move to stab him in the back, when a flurry of kagune shards came in her direction. She jumped backwards, looking up at the source of them. An ukkaku ghoul, in a black rabbit mask. 

“Rabbit!” She shouted, and dropped her attention from Tsukiyama immediately. 

Tsukiyama stumbled forward further, but this time Banjou caught him. “That kagune, it seems familiar, de ja vue,” even a serious injury did not make him drop his act. Banjou was beginning to suspect it wasn’t an act. 

“Can’t think about it right now,” He said, pulling Tsukiyama along now that the single guard had been distracted. Strange, whoever this rabbit was it was almost like they had been saved. 

“I bet you say that a lot,” Tsukiyama muttered into his shoulder. 

“Hey!” 

Aogiri’s 13th Ward Hideout, Eto’s Room 

Kaneki received no answer to his knock on the door, and had decided the most logical course of action was to break into Eto’s room for the third time in as many days. Maybe he had resolved a few minutes ago after Naki’s various annoying behaviors to deliver the book to her in person, in the second of panic his heart felt after knocking on the door he made a new decision that returning the book without ever having to talk to anybody would be much better. 

He stood there book still in hand, but stopped at her desk when he noticed something new. A mansucript, half finished by the looks of it, with the words ‘the hanged man’ in print on the cover. He pressed the collection of Hakushu Kitahara’s poetry to his hips with one hand, as he picked up the manuscript with his other. 

“I’ve never heard of this book before,” Kaneki said to himself, thinking he was alone. 

“Me neither,” Eto said, right beside him. 

Kaneki wanted to jump, but his tight control of himself only had him express surprise by slowly turning his head around. 

“Who do you think wrote it?” She said, leaning against him slightly as a way to prod him. 

“You would know, wouldn’t you? It’s your room,” He assessed logically. 

“This is Tatara’s room, I just borrow it to hide away.” 

And do other things, Kaneki thought, but did not say aloud because he did not want to hint at what he had seen, nor deal with the repercussions of that. ‘Is that why you’re not upset at me for breaking in this time?” 

“Uh-huh, I don’t mind you breaking into this room three times.” 

“Three times, huh,” He said with a look of complete innocence on his face. 

“Don’t get me wrong though, I’m not an especially gracious person. I was just tired of only having books to keep me company,” she said leaning forward towards him. Kaneki’s foot hovered back to back away, but put his foot down instead and stood his ground. 

It was lonely being young. I never knew my father, but that was okay. He left his books behind. 

When he read them he felt a connection. 

“You know it’s Hakushuu Kitahara’s birthday today, so I thought I’d return this,” he held out the book with the jade dragonfly on the cover to her. 

“I’m honored to get my stolen property back as a birthday gift,” Eto said, but she paged open the book anyway, “You know last year I asked Tatara if he wanted to read this and he said the Kanji gave him a headache.” 

“Last year I asked Touka if she wanted to borrow my book and she said no and walked away,” Kaneki said. 

“Ghouls need to read more books-” The two of them said in unison, then opened their eyes and noticed the other had said it too without thinking, and both backed away now not expecting or ready for the awkward closeness the situation had brought them to. 

“Speaking of,” she said her voice childish as she spoke through the filter of the bandages covering her mouth, “I am going to go read.” Kaneki wondered why even in this secluded room she still wore her bandages. 

Ghouls need to have a mask that they wear at all times, Uta told him as his fingers measured the contours of his face. 

He understood that, but he was curious all the same. No, curiosity did not describe the feeling of wanting to see what lied underneath, or wanting her to show him. Kaneki stood still though, and only his eyes moved to watch her as she relaxed on the ground away from him and flipped open the book he had handed to her. 

Maybe all she really did was read in this room, like some sort of secluded Garden of Eden. It was a delicate thought, one that was smashed the next moment like a rock thrown through a spider’s web, she was under Tatara’s thumb which made her, direct in line under the king’s command. 

Rather than look comfortable or settle down at all, Kaneki stood betwen the threshold of both worlds. He picked up the manuscript and read, but did so leaning against a wall, continually starting and stopping to keep watch on Eto. 

It was Eto who let herself drift away into a world of reading, and it was Eto who had that world shattered when Kaneki suddenly cried out, “There’s no way it ends there! Where’s the rest of it?” He flipped through the pages a second time at high speed. 

Eto who had lounged on the ground without much grace, one leg resting and the other arched in the air, turned her head around and rested it on her chin. She didn’t even bother to hide her bemusement this time around, like an empress lounging on her throne. “That’s the most I’ve seen you emote in weeks,” she observed. 

“Well I-” he sunk a little bit, “When an author writes they set certain expectations-” his butt connected with the floor, “I’m unsatisfied,” he muttered into his knees as he pulled them to his face. 

Eto rolled over so she was flat on the ground, looking up at the ceiling, but still closer to him. “Watching the cracks begin to form in that mask of yours, that’s definitely something I like- alright!” She turned her head to look up at him, Eto never seemed to look straight at anything her head always tilted in anticipation of what she would observe, “I’ve decided to help you out, what was the book like before it ended?” 

“It was a standard locked room mystery, but the ending cut out right before the culprit was revealed,” Kaneki said, placing the manuscript on the bridge of his nose as his brow furrowed. “Maybe the author intended it to end that way like,” she waved her hand flippantly in the air, “Some of life’s mysteries can never be solved.” 

“Don’t give me that,” Kaneki growled in a low voice, dropping any sort of pretense of stoicity, “The entire appeal of a mystery book is the resolution of a mystery, if it were about the message it would be called the message genre.” 

“You’re getting quite worked up,” She noted, rolling onto her belly so she could now watch him, while at the same time kicking her legs behind her. “Even if I enjoy it I imagine you must not, always constantly trying to save face, Kaneki Ken. Because of that I’ll throw you a bone. What if you can deduce the killer already from everything written up until that point?” 

Kaneki tensed his brow, then gripped it with his fingers. How desperate was he to maintain his control that he made this obvious gesture of trying to cover it. “And how would I do that?” He said, even though every instinct told him to stop engaging Eto. To him, she was like a snake in the garden. 

He didn’t even notice that she had wormed her way across the ground closer to him, “Mysteries more than any other genre, are all about their conventions. They have to conduct themselves by rules otherwise the audience won’t follow along. If you say in the first chapter that there is a rifle hanging on the wall-” 

“Then it has to be fired-” Kaneki said, finishing her thought, for the first time he resisted his urge to inch away, “Anton Chekhov.” 

“Then there’s Knox’s ten commandments to consider, the novel must declare any clues they have uncovered. If the story followed basic rules of setup and payoff, then we should be able to deduce the ending.” 

“We?” Kaneki paused. 

Before he could even hesitate for a full moment, Eto had crossed the threshold, and was next to his face faster than his eyes could track her, looking up at him obviously because of their height difference. He turned his head, adjusting to her, and for the first time saw eyes peering through the ghostly holes in her bandages. “It’s your fault, you aroused my interest so you should take responsibility.” 

Eto seemed to repeat that phrase every time she wanted him to do something. Kaneki realized this, but his only token resistance was to remain silent. What color were Eto’s eyes then, green, he made a mental note of that information. Eto spoke again, and his shoulder hitched sightly as he had been caught staring, “It has to be better than sulking quietly on that chair in your room, right?” 

She turned around, and with one sweep of her purple robes made to exit the room. 

“It’s a good chair,” was all Kaneki could come up with, as he reluctantly followed her. 

Aogiri’s 13th Ward Hideout, Sometime Later 

Naki slammed the manuscript down on the table for dramatic effect. He held silent looking at the both of them filling the air with expectations for a moment, before disappointing all of it by saying, “I don’t get it!” Loudly, and with brash enthusiasm. 

After Eto and Kaneki took the time to explain it to him, Naki tried again a second time. He looked more like a child not paying attention in class, then a thoughtful person as he tried to figure out the ending. 

Finally he cracked his knuckle, drawing both of their attentions from where they had been sitting down next to each other and passing the time talking idly about books, “You reek!” 

“You mean eureka,” Kaneki corrected gently. 

“A single limb was torn from the body of the victim. The killer was none other than my Big Bro Yamori, he loved tearing people limb from limb. After dying, he was reincarnated to the realm of this book. Then he used the rope to strangle the victim into unconsciousness, and artfully sawed away at their arms until the tendons separated one by one.” 

Kaneki’s eyes widened slightly, but he kept his mouth tight while hearing the graphic descriptions. Eto once again, hid her reactions behind the mask she always wore. When she did not speak up Kaneki interpreted it as his turn to do so, “Naki, I don’t think it was Yamori. Rule number 2 is to rule out all supernatural agencies. Where did he even get the rope?” 

Naki shuffled through the pages of the manuscript, and shoved a page straight into his face. Kaneki read by crossing his eyes, “The narrator mentions seeing a rope, but then never brings it up again.” 

Eto pulled Kaneki by the sleeve. Willingly he lowered himself down to her level. 

“Chekhov’s rope,” Eto murmured into his ear. 

“I don’t think the rope was used as the murder weapon, tearin’ their arm off would have done ‘em in good enough ‘nyway,” Shousei said, his thick face having had quietly hidden behind Naki and read over his shoulder this entire time. 

“You’re right, this is one of those situations called a locked door mystery. The true mystery is not the method of murder but how the killer was able to get in and out of the locked room,” Kaneki said, trying to intellectualize the words of Naki’s beloved brothers. 

“Maybe there was a secret passage in and out of the room,” Hoguro said, also looking up from underneath his bangs which so naturally covered his face. 

“We’re getting off track,” Kaneki said, exasperated at the antics of the three stooges, “Not more than one secret passage is allowed, and besides it was never mentioned.” 

“Oh, oh!” Shousei said bumping Naki aside in his excitement, the single hair that escaped from his styled hair flying around as he did, “I got it, if he can’t go through the doors he must ‘ave gone out through the window.” 

Kaneki snatched the manuscript from Naki’s hands, and flipped through it with precision opening up to a passage, “The main character opens the window and looks outside of the same room to see long grass, later he inspects the same scene, the detective is bound to declare any clues which he discovers, if the murderer had escaped through the window then he would have left a trail in the grass.” 

“Oh I know,” Naki bounced excited again, “Big Bro said if I fail to tie my shoes I’d fall and die, what if the plot resolves itself by the murderer just falling and dying!” 

“That’s too convenient, the accident can never help the detective,” Kaneki said. 

“Why not?” Naki gasped. 

“No protagonist of a story can be compelling unless they continually suffer fates whims,” Kaneki elaborated on coldly. 

“Maybe Big Bro Naki’s on to something with dropping dead, there’s a scene early on where they eat, maybe the killer poisoned them then and they didn’t drop dead till they were in the room all alone,” Hoguro said showing a bit more restraint than either of his brothers when it came to theorizing. 

“The time period between eating and the time the body was found was too great, I’ve never heard a poison that functions like that before.” 

Gagi and Guge muttered something in the background. Naki turned his scarred ear towards them, “They’re asking if the murder victim could have had an evil twin.” 

“We weren’t prepared for such a cliche twist,” Kaneki sighed. 

“Maybe the sidekick did it!” Shousei said, trying to join in, “The detectives little bro wanted to show his big bro his chops.” 

“The Watson is supposed to be the less intelligent of the two main characters. Are you all just guessing by this point?” Kaneki felt a tug as his elbow again. He leaned down to Eto’s level. 

“What if the detective was the murderer?” She whispered into his ear. 

“Not you too!” Kaneki said recoiling. 

Hoguro, who had been looking genuinely thoughtful for a while licked his lips and spoke up, “The novel is called the hanged man right? What if that was what the rope was used for. Unable to escape through the window without leaving a trail, the murderer repelled down from the second story to the first, moved in through the window, committed the crime, then escaped by climbing back upwards.” 

“That’s far too complicated,” Kaneki said, “And also what kind of person would sit there and watch as somebody dangled outside their window, then came in, and then killed them.” 

“If it was big bro I would!” Naki jumped up, volunteering himself for a fictional murder that would never happen. 

Kaneki sighed a second time, feeling like he had already exhausted his allotted emotional reactions for the day. “Have any of you even read a mystery novel before? Eto, put your hand down. Really? No murder on the Orient Express? No Ranpo Edogawa? No Holmes even?” 

The ghouls all looked at him with blank eyes. Kaneki felt another tug at his sleeve. He leaned down to Eto’s level obediently. She blew on his neck to mark her presence. 

“Aogiri needs to read more books,” Eto concluded. 

Kaneki stood all the way back up. This time he was the one to pull on Eto’s shoulder, forcing her to stand on her tip toes to reach his level. He still had to lean in slightly to whisper into her ear, “I agree.” 

Kaneki’s Room, Minutes Later 

“Tsukiyama is an avid reader so-” 

Kaneki said as he opened the door, but stopped when he saw Banjou trying to keep Tsukiyama still as he sat on the lone chair in the room. Hair slightly mussed but still somehow remaining to look handsome even as a mess, Tsukiyama looked up to Kaneki. 

“Was there something you needed of me, Kaneki?” 

His face looked so sincere, Kaneki stumbled on his first word, “Y-yes,” He regretted letting that genuineness show, “Report to me what happened.” 

Tsukiyama stood up at great effort, and bowed with a hand across his chest. “I took Banjou to a dinner show, but we were held up by some uninvited guests.” 

“Don’t be so dramatic, you’re barely in the condition for it,” Banjou said, his statement maybe not entirely born of impatience, “The CCG raided the gourmet club. The same CCG agent that got Yamori attacked me, but Tsukiyama rescued me.” 

“Is that why-?” Kaneki asked, his words slow as his line of sight lowered to the wound on Tsukiyama’s body. 

“You’re right, but that’s no excuse for making such an awful display in front of my master. A torn up suit, did father raise me right at all?” Tsukiyama said casually, laughing even though he made a sound like gurgling blood in between bits of laughter. 

“Tsukiyama,” Kaneki’s old self might have been able to be more honest in this moment, “You need meat.” Kaneki bit his own thumb until it bled, and then offered it up to Tsukiyama. 

“Kaneki?” Tsukiyama said, as if his heart had skipped a beat. 

“It’s fine, I’m used to the pain,” he said rather darkly. 

Tsukiyama leaned forward, “You know when knights are keeping a promise, they kiss their masters on the thumb as a sign of that,” He said, as his lips made contact with Kaneki’s thumb, “I’ll take this and nothing more, my promise to you.” 

With one flash of teeth, Kaneki’s thumb was gone and Tsukiyama’s wounds already began to knit themselves. Kaneki’s only recognition of this was a slight shaking of his hand. The mood had become rather serene, so of course Eto destroyed it by clearing her throat. 

“Right,” Kaneki turned to Tsukiyama, and explained the manuscript situation to him. As if it had the exact same amount of importance as what had happened before that. 

Tsukiyama framed his chin with his thumb and index finger in excitement, “Feel free to call me MM, master of mysteries-” 

“No thank you,” Kaneki interrupted. 

“Anyway, I’ve got the beat of that story down perfectly. What’s important is not who did it, but rather the do-rah-mah!” He said pronouncing the word with an extra syllable in full english. “You are the one behind this conspiracy all along!” He said, pointing at Eto with a dramatic, ace attorney pose-esque flair. 

Eto looked dumbfounded, and pointed at herself. 

“I’m sure it’s not her, don’t make a fuss,” Banjou lectured. 

“As long as the ending twist captures that moment of pulse pounding excitement, the mystery genre has been satisfied,” Tsukiyama made his case, and finished with a bow. 

“Thank you for your insight,” Kaneki said mechanically, as he left for the hll again Eto following behind him automatically. 

When they were out in the hallway together, Kaneki did not turn to her, but rather kept looking ahead as he spoke. “You’re so quiet around others.” 

“Maybe I’m shy like you, Kaneki Ken,” Her voice floated up from behind him. 

“I doubt that,” Kaneki dismissed her. 

“How cold,” Eto was giggling though, “I only want to speak to people who interest me, for the rest, I can only observe them.” 

“So I interest you,” Kaneki repeated numbly. 

“You should be flattered,” Eto said. 

“The people I draw the interest of, never have the best of intentions towards me,” he said honest, and then before Eto could respond with anything the door swung open creating a barrier between them. 

“Kaneki, there’s something I need to report,” Tsuiyama said, and before Kaneki could even acknowledge him, he began to whisper in Kaneki’s ear. Kaneki’s expression visibly changed in a way Eto could track for the first time that day. She did not even need to bother listening in. 

“Eto, I have to go, but a parting gift,” He held the manuscript out in front of her, “I figured it out. The murderer was a sixth character, who had hidden their presence all along because they serve a double function as the narrator. That’s the twist the ending built up to, and why the narration stopped just as the murderer was about to be announced.” 

Eto took the manuscript in her hands. It was like a bridge between them. “Ah, thank you,” She said, unaware of what else there was to say in such a moment. 

The Gourmet Club, later that night 

“It can’t be helped,” Kaneki said, as the last of the rear guard that had been left behind to clean up the scene at the Gourmet club, fell to the ground dead. 

When he saw Tsukiyama surveying the damage, Kaneki lowered his head, “These were all your friends, I’m sorry you had to abandon them Tsukiyama.” 

“It’s fine, you are a much more important friend to me.” 

Kaneki said nothing in response to that notion. There was no evidence left of the rabbit that had come to save Tsukiyama, but Kaneki knew. 

“Touka-” He muttered, holding the mouth of his mask against his actual mask hoping it might muffle the words, and with that muffle the feeling in his heart. Then his unzipped, the part around his mouth, surveying all the corspes that the CCG had carelessly left behind with minimal guarding. 

“Look away, please,” He instructed both Banjou and Tsukiyama as he knelt down over the nearest corpse. 

Banjou was the first to look away. 

“Hey, no peeking!” He shouted, as he tried to wrestle Tsukiyama’s head into looking away too. 

Aogiri’s hideout in the 13th ward, the next morning 

Kaneki knocked on the door to Eto’s hideaway once more. 

“It’s alright, you can just break in again, Kaneki Ken,” Kaneki sighed and opened the door of his own accord. He walked in to see Eto hunched over a desk. He moved behind her, and grabbed her by the shoulder with a gentle touch, nudging her slightly. 

Eto grabbed his wrist in reaction to the touch, but relented and instead put in his hand a fresh manuscript. Kaneki made a face, but did not speak his thoughts out loud forcing Eto to once again interpret. 

“It’s a new manuscript, ending and all. I wrote one based on your theory.” 

Kaneki immediately sat down, though his ass was falling on the floor, and began to read. This time, he breathed a sigh of relief, all tension easing out of his shoulders at once, as he experienced the brief high that was finishing a satisfying book. The clouds drained out of his eyes fast though, as he came to realize something. 

“The writing of the ending matches the rest of the book perfectly, this was your manuscript,” He analyzed, and then reached the obvious question, “Then why did you not know the ending? Were you just leading me on for an interesting show?” 

“Was that what I was doing?” Eto mirrored back at him, but then she turned around in her chair to face him, and looking up at her for the first time, he could see her eyes again at this angle both of them an unexpectedly soft green, “Here’s my theory, maybe I just wanted to have a fun conversation about books to pass the time until Tatara needs me next.” 

“Needs us next, you mean,” Kaneki said, correcting her gently. How many times had he heard those words, as a lure to pull him closer. “So you write then?” 

“When I find something interesting enough to write about,” She answered passively. 

Tsukiyama Shuu had told him about his lonely days in his great library. “Why did you originally leave it hanging like that then?” 

“It was a pun, the hanged man ends with a cliffhanger ending. Hey, don’t give me that face, I know it was a bad idea. That’s why I gave up halfway through, some seeds are useless from the start and you have no choice but to pluck them.” 

Kaneki flinched at familiar words. Rize Kamishiro. 

“I never should have bothered, mysteries aren’t my thing. I thought maybe I could with the overlap between mystery and horror, you know, like Silence of the Lambs.” 

“A cannibal criminal, what a familiar sounding topic,” Kaneki remarked drily, and then, “I don’t see how they overlap Silence is a thriller.” 

“Yes, but to the common man mystery horror, and genuine mystery are often mistaken for one another.” 

They had started talking and it was so easy, but it had been just as easy with Rize Kamishiro. When he saw the Black Goat’s Egg in her lap. “Horror oh, that’s who you're writing reminded me of, Takatsuki Sen.” 

“Are you saying something?” 

“No, it’s a good thing I think. Takatsuki Sen has always been my favorite author.” 

“Oh,” Eto looked thoughtful for a second, or at least that’s what Kaneki read when she closed her eyes, but then she smiled at him from underneath her bandages in a ditzy sort of way, “Sorry, never heard of her.” 

The 13th Ward Aogiri Hideout, after that conversation had ended 

Eto was walking alongside Tatara, her usual place. She pulled on his great white sleeves to get his attention. Tatara though, would not lean down for her like Kaneki would. 

“I need a favor,” She asked. 

Though it was worded like a request, Tatara knew it was an order. 


End file.
